Tenchi Muyo: Miho-Kiyo Complex
by DishonorableKnight
Summary: An AU starring Kiyone and Mihoshi as they take the chance to join a special unit within the Galaxy Police: Special Intelligence Field Operations (SIFO). With partners such as hot-headed and prideful Mitsuki Tsukushi, unsociable but technically-fluent Ryoji Ishizuka, and weathered and wise Junichiro Yoritomo, SIFO is prepared to tackle cases from the mundane to the downright insane.
1. Special Session in the National Assembly

There is one planet with a name that is known throughout the entire galaxy. It is a name both deeply respected and feared, but it is nevertheless known by all. Jurai.

At a glance, this curious planet is painted with beautiful stripes of deep blue and bright green, but the more prominently features a mass of metal which covers a large portion of the planet's surface. Upon closer inspection, this mass of metal forms an intricate city, housing billions of residents who refer to it simply as "Jurai City".

At the heart of an empire spanning numerous systems and peoples, a single event carries the potential for rippling far across the galaxy for both good and ill consequences; it is here that this story begins...

It was nearing dusk in Jurai City; the star Taiyo illuminated a lazy orange hue of light in the sky, and the air was crisp and cool. The surface-level streets were bustling with life as waves of people walked to and fro various points of interest, acting as small, insignificant cogs in the cosmopolitan machine. Near the center of this city, there was a single building that stood out from the others in the area, a structure with bold curves and exceeding majesty in its size and scope that it easily eclipsed all other nearby structures.

A large winding marble pathway lay before this building, surrounded by exotic foliage and rows of large and painstakingly-carved statues on either side of people whose past deeds have earned them everlasting recognition. The end of this path led to a large set of stairs that once climbed led to the front doors that funneled people into this building. Above these doors lay a large sign with words written in beautifully archaic calligraphy which is meant to read as "National Assembly".

In the distance, a man stood still in the middle of the street, staring longingly at the front entrance. He adjusted his pair of glasses and disappeared into the crowd.

* * *

_**Episode I**_

_**Special Session in**__** the National Assembly**_

There was a low rumble echoing throughout the halls of the National Assembly. At one end of the winding maze of heavy, ornate doors and thick red carpet were the doors that led into a large chamber. Men dressed in black, white and wholly unfashionable dressing involved themselves in a furious argument. The chambers themselves were circular, with rows of seats growing higher as they went further back to view the center of the room. The back center of the room was elevated by a set of steps, where a single man sat in full view of the assembly.

"Once again, I implore everyone to leave your personal biases at the door!" The man spoke. "Remember that we are here to discuss only what is happening and not what how well feel about it. We are not going to get anywhere by endlessly quarreling." That man at the center said loud and clear, subduing the noise in the chambers somewhat."

"I agree, prime minister. The discussion has become bogged down, so let's refer to the original statement that we opened with." One man in the front row answered. "Simply put, Emperor Azusa is overstepping his boundaries. Need I remind you that so far this year alone, he has sacked three government ministers, including the Minister of Economic Affairs over 'performance issues', and which he gave not a single piece of evidence to justify this decision. Anyone with common sense will see that he is covering for his special interests. It will come as no surprise to me if he was planning on appointing one of his relatives to that position, Princess Ayeka for example." He finished.

"That's implausible." Another man replied, "Princess Ayeka has distanced herself from her father, she wouldn't accept a position in the Juraian government, let alone even desire to speak with Emperor Azusa. Besides, given the length of the 'extended vacation' that she has given herself on Terra, it's clear she believes herself far above such things as work and responsibilities."

"Nonetheless, these are unprecedented moves by the emperor," The first man continued, still addressing the Prime Minister. "None of his predecessors have been this bold in their attempt to exert their power and challenge us so overtly. It is more worrying that the Emperor does not wish to give concern to the effects that his intervention on the Juraian government has on our ability to function. For instance, we have yet to move forward with the vote on Bill 45208-the expansion of funding for the Ministry of Urban Development and Housing- even though I introduced it to the floor two weeks ago, because we have busied ourselves with vetoing the emperor's recent wave of appointments to the Ministry of Health and Wellness, To me, it is an insult that he thinks he is above taking responsibility for the "petty bureaucratic issues" that he alone is causing."

Quietly, another man stood up from one of the middle rows. It was Deputy Kyouichi Kiro, a young, ambitious man who was recently elected to his first term in office Despite his age, his will has proven to be resolute and he clearly has a long future in the political world.

"Why is it that we never hold ourselves to the same standards that we expect of the emperor?" He asked. "The emperor does not influence our voting process, nor is it responsible for the National Assembly's failure to function properly; it is our own. The people in this assembly who condemn even the slightest exertion of power against the National Assembly from the emperor are the same people who do not bat an eye towards viciously shutting down any actions made by either the emperor or the Council of Elders."

"Yes, because they are not the ones who rule Jurai, we are!" A voice from the back suddenly boomed across the vast chamber, immediately silencing all other noises and directing everyone's attention towards the speaking man who had just stood up from his seat in the back of the chambers. The Prime Minister immediately recognized him as Deputy Heihachirō Suboru- an old, balding firebrand who has earned his reputation as the most radical member of the National Assembly. The Prime Minister slowly looked over to Suboru and kept his composure unchanged unlike most who were surprised by the Deputy's sudden outburst.

"Would you care to elaborate, Deputy Suboru?" The Prime Minister asked, obviously being unhappy about another sudden outburst of his. "We're anxious to hear more of your famed wisdom."

Suboru cleared his throat loudly, clearly on purpose to emphasize the importance of what he was about to say. "I still do not understand why you are such an adamant defender of the emperor and the council, Deputy Kiro. You were elected to the National Assembly to represent the residents of Jurai City District 21, not to represent the emperor and his cronies!" He said, causing an immediate reaction from the crowd; many cheered and approved of Suboru's directness and many others attempted to shout them down. "If you wanted to serve Azusa, you should've become a knight of the Royal Court!"

The Prime Minister reached for the gavel-a relic of Jurai's younger years-which lay to his side on a small circular table, striking it fiercely against the sound block and yelling "Silence, silence!" to the rowdy crowd. The loud impact sent a wave that resonated throughout the entire room, and the deputies soon calmed themselves.

Suboru nodded toward the prime minister and continued, "Indeed, why would anyone want to believe that the emperor is anything but a power-hungry despot? Through his collaboration with the thoroughly corrupted Council of Elders, Azusa Jurai has seen fit to revoke as many powers as he pleases from the National Assembly and assume them himself. Remember, Kiro, that we alone possessed the ability to appoint government ministers until the Emperor begged the Council to give him the same power, and this is just one from recent memory. Since I have been re-elected to my office just two years ago, he has been granted the right to the right to withhold information regarding the finances of the Royal Court; he has seized the final authority over appointing leaders of Jurai's armed forces-now he is free to poison our prestigious military with bribery and aristocracy; he has been granted the ability to introduce amendments to Jurai's constitution and forced us to pass amendments with a minimum eighty-percent majority in favor. And now, Azusa is suggesting to the Council of Elders that perhaps he should have the power to grant Royal pardons to anyone he pleases! Just imagine how he would use this ability to clear even the most scum-ridden and sinned individuals of wrongdoing for his advantage, the very idea disgusts me!"

Deputy Kiro now turned to Suboru, being unable to refrain himself from challenging his assessment, and the prime minister groaned at the sight. Ever since Kiro had been elected to office in the last election, he has managed to butt heads with old Suboru at every possible opportunity. By now, the two men have become passionate rivals; Kiro sees Suboru as a senile, nostalgia-blinded cripple, while Suboru sees Kiro as a royal boot-licker. They were a microcosm of the wider division among the members of the National Assembly.

"You must think the emperor is doing this as a game: how much frustration can he inflict on the National Assembly? That is not the case. Recall that this institution was established on the basis that the Emperor of Jurai trusted the people to guide themselves; he placed his trust in us, the National Assembly, to guide the people. However, it is now clear that Emperor Azusa believes we have failed in that regard, I am inclined to agree. Even after all this time, we've failed to stamp down on the crime that plagues this city; we've failed to purge the corporations whose ruthless drive for profits has caused numerous economic recessions; worst of all, we failed to prevent that terrible war with Seniwa five years ago. The Emperor, even in the face of our sheer incompetence, refused to issue an edict and trusted us to make the best of that situation. Look where that got us."

"The emperor didn't stay idle because he held some vapid notion of trust or faith with us, but the truth is that he and the Royal Court were the ones who wanted the war most of all." Suboru countered. "Aashigaru Corp, Yukohasa Heavy Manufacturing, and countless other companies in the weapons industry-which associates of both the Royal Court and members of the Council invested heavily into- saw their profits soar during that time and the emperor couldn't have been happier; I do not think it is a coincidence that soon after the war ended, the Royal Court suddenly paid back the entirety of their debt which they owed to the National Bank of Jurai for over ten years prior-a total of twenty billion rupees-in a single signed check!"

"You lie!" Kiro yelled back. "We had established a committee to investigate this exact issue, but there was never evidence of war profiteering from the Royal Court, even after six entire months of searching. The austerity measures that the Emperor pushed through the Assembly right after the war are what paid back those twenty billion rupees, measures that I recall you supporting wholeheartedly, despite your supposed opposition to 'Royal Interference'. I must say Suboru, despite what you think, I would wholly respect your decision to commit to republican ideals if you had the record to back it up!"

Suboru made a sound of disgust as Kiro finished. "Tell me, how many coins do you think will be clinking proudly in your deep pockets when the emperor hears of all the praise which has been coming from you alone? From my perspective, you are not a man fit to be a member of this Assembly. No, you are a lapdog of the emperor and a slave to his money. In short, I think you're a parasite!" He yelled, immediately causing another huge shouting matching all over the chambers. The prime minister again reached for the gavel and struck soundly on the block twice.

Suboru continued, not waiting for the noise to be suppressed by the prime minister. "Azusa is not our friend, he is our enemy who works to directly oppose us at every step. Right now, our fragile democracy is fighting for its life; if Azusa is allowed to continue, then we all may as well resign from office, burn the Juraian Constitution, and re-establish the dictatorship that our forefathers shed blood to rein in. I propose a solution, one that will cure the Juraian government and society of its ills. The Emperor and his family, the Royal Court and Council of Elders, all the established orders the prevent the National Assembly from properly functioning as described by the Constitution, must be cast away, abolished!"

Without hesitation, the Assembly once again broke into another roar of argument, clearly louder and fiercer than any previous that afternoon; so much in fact that even the Prime Minister's attempts at suppressing the chaos through the gavel seemed to fall on deaf ears.

"Down with the emperor and his lackeys!" Suboru yelled amid the roaring, "Down with repression! Down with decadence! Long live democracy! Long live Jurai!"

Meanwhile, just outside the National Assembly building stood two men dressed in blue and gold uniforms and holding ceremonial swords as they stood on each side of the wide set of doors that led inside. On the left was a grizzled older man with heavy eyelids and a stone-cold expression and on the right was a younger man who wore a similar expression on his face.

"Three hours." The older man suddenly said out loud, not turning his head to him.

"What? What're three hours?" The younger man asked, not turning his head either.

"They've been debating... oh, who am I kidding? They've been arguing in there for a little over three hours now. You were about to ask that question."

"Really? How did you figure that?"

"I heard you breathe with your mouth instead of your nose. You were going to ask something and well... what else is there to talk about?"

"Good point. I'm going to guess it's Suboru again, right?"

"Probably. With him and Kiro attracted to each other like magnets, they're bound to start something."

Things went silent for a few minutes until unexpectedly, another guard was seen by the two men slowly climbing the stairs up to them. The guard saluted his fellows with his sword, but the older guard was not impressed by his honors. He raised his hand and slowly counted three fingers.

"You're three minutes too early." He said.

"I am? But I was told by the Captain of the Guard to change posts just now; it must be a mix up with the schedules. Honest mistake." The man quickly replied.

The older guard shook his head. "No, there's no mistake. I know the schedule inside and out, and I know you're three minutes too early. Go call the Captain of the Guard over here if you want, but you're early.

As he spoke, he became curious about this man and soon realized that something was wrong. This man looked like a complete stranger. He also glanced at the ceremonial sword he was holding in his right hand. It was held lazily at an angle off to the side. One of the first things every Republican Guard is trained to do is to perfectly hold the sword straight up at all times without excuses.

The truth came to him in an instant: this man was an imposter!

The stranger noticed how the older guard was eyeing him suspiciously. He blinked rapidly; he didn't say anything since he knew this man already figured it out. He took a deep breath.

The guard sighed. "Drop the act, you're coming with me and..." he stopped mid-sentence as suddenly the mysterious man walked right up to him; he felt something thrust deep into his abdomen, and another second went by before an unbearably intense pain registered with him. The older guard slowly looked down and saw the black handle of the blade which was wedged deep inside. He gasped and fell over on the ground, silent.

The younger guard gasped in surprise as he witnesses the assault. Without wasting time, he raised his sword to strike down the assailant. Just as he brought his blade down, however, the killer quickly readied his sword and parried the strike. In that brief moment where he put the guard's body off-balance, he thrust his blade straight into the guard's chest. He struggled and writhed in pain for a moment before he too fell down silent.

The killer dropped his bloodstained sword and raised his hand into the air. Almost immediately, several masked men quickly rose up from hiding spots near the foot of the steps and climbed up to meet their comrade, who pulled out a small electronic device that projected a three-dimensional map of the building's interior.

"Good job keeping out of sight." He said to the group. "Alright, let's go over the plan again. The chambers are at the very back of the building. Three pathways to get there, all crowding with guards; they're only holding swords thankfully. Three groups rush down these three paths. Make sure you check every side-door and hallway and leave no one alive. The last thing we need is some straggler pulling the alarm while 'he' is busy making his entrance."

The group's members nodded and reached into their dark, layered clothing. They briefly prepared their weapons before rushing into the building and down multiple directions.

The chaos inside the speaking chamber continued. The prime minister, exhausted and detached from the chaos, slouched in his seat as he sighed in disappointment at the sight; the prestigious National Assembly of Jurai had, once again, been reduced to immature shouting matches in the span of a few loaded speeches by a couple of members. He looked down at the gavel still in his hand, that poor gavel which by now was nearly cracked in two from the many times he had so far slammed it his vain attempts to suppress his peers.

However, apart from the stream of yelling and insults echoing off the walls of the chamber, the Prime Minister heard another noise which sounded very suspicious. He leaned in his seat closer to the door and heard it again; this time, he was very certain that it was a blasting sound, and then he heard more of them. The rest of the assembly began to hear these sounds too, as they abruptly stopped their arguments and paid attention to what was coming from outside the chambers. In this silence, the mysterious sounds became much more pronounced; they were sounds emanating from laser weapons, and the cries of pain and agony coming afterward made it clear that the Republican Guards were their targets. These sounds rapidly became louder and louder until they seemed as though they were right outside the door, and then they suddenly stopped.

The chamber gravely silent before the set of large twin doors flew open, and one man calmly walked through. Silver-haired, dressed in dark robes covered by a large green cape, he strode gracefully to the up the small set of steps to where the prime minister was sitting down and put himself in the center of attention. Soon after, more men who were dressed in dark garbs and holding weapons followed. The prime minister instinctively got up and slowly moved out of the way. There was an awkward pause as the man seated himself down in the pristine seat and crossed one leg over the other, quietly cleared his throat and adjusted his glasses.

"Good afternoon, gentlemen," He announced, taking care to look over the entire room before him. "My, this is quite an impressive chamber you have all to yourselves here; such marvelous architecture and meticulous design covering every square meter, a truly priceless relic. Anyway, my name is Kagato, and as of right now, all you esteemed members of Jurai's National Assembly gathered here... are my hostages."

A great gasp came from the members of the National Assembly, as the man had confirmed their worst suspicions. However, not all were amused with this turn of events.

"Preposterous, to think we will bow to the whims of a criminal!" A voice boomed from one of the back rows, catching Kagato by surprise as he looked over with a raised eyebrow at the man who stood up. "There are serious consequences for interrupting the National Assembly during a session. Do not think for a second that you are safe here! You will be arrested, and your head will swing from the gallows for this!"

"Please, Deputy Suboru! This is no time for citing protocol!" The prime minister said in vain.

Kagato looked unamused by the declaration. He calmly stood up and snapped his right fingers, and one of his men near him immediately began to make his way over to Suboru. The henchman briskly climbed up the set of steps to near the end of the chambers and over to the uncooperative deputy. He took out a pistol that was concealed within his coat and smacked Suboru hard against the face with the grip before he grabbed him by the arm.

"Damn you, let go of me!" Suboru yelled in vain as he was painfully and slowly dragged across the floor and up the small steps leading to Kagato.

When within arm's length, Kagato took the weapon from his subordinate and he looked at Suboru silently and with a face of gleeful malice before firing. The blast of blue energy pierced clean through the deputy's heart and caused blood to gush our flow out and stain his clothes and the floor red. Suboru staggered back, gasped desperately, and spurted more blood from his mouth before finally, his legs buckled and he fell down; his body rolled down the small set of stairs to the floor, remaining still and silent.

The gruesome murder of one of their own started a wave of panic among the rest of the deputies. Kagato fired again twice into the air and suppressed the fears of the crowd before speaking up again. "As you see, I am entirely serious. If you don't want to die, then I would suggest that you all behave like good little hostages and be silent. Now then I have an important call to make."

Kagato took out a small spherical object from within his clothing; it was a robot with a large built-in lens. He pressed a button on the robot and after waiting a second for the unit to activate, he threw it softly into the air, where it was able to levitate off the ground.

"This message is for Azusa Masaki Jurai, 47th Emperor of the Juraian Empire. My name is Kagato, and as of right now, I have taken Jurai's entire National Assembly hostage. I am not in the service of any corporation, nor am I a conspirator with the Seniwan government or any other government, nor am I affiliated with any pirate guild; I do this out of my own free will. I do not want money or compensation, nor I do not want to make a political statement. My only demand... is you. You will come here by yourself, and face me. If you meet my demand, then I will let everyone here escape with their lives. If not, then I will blow up this building and kill everyone inside. That is all."

Kagato turned back to the deputies. "I assume you all heard what I said, so don't make this difficult. Stay seated comfortably where you are."

He turned to the recording robot which was floating idly in the air. "Now, little one, go out there and spread this message to the media. Quickly."

* * *

"And you predict that economic growth will slow for a fourth consecutive quarter, Mr. Uesugi?"

"Yes, unfortunately. The recent border skirmishes between Seniwa and Renoir are making imports from either planet exorbitantly expensive. Accordingly, the rising prices of these goods on Jurai has caused consumer spending on average to fall by twelve percent..."

"Hold on, what is this? What? You mean right now? Really? Oh... Tsunami."

"Something wrong?"

"We... we have breaking news from the Imperial District. It appears that a group of armed militants are inside the Juraian National Assembly Building and holding the assembly hostage... all of them, I mean. We... we have a message from the group themselves regarding the situation. Play it, please..."

Hours passed after the media initially reported the incident to the public. The streets surrounding the National Assembly Building were cordoned off by authorities, but given the lack of information and the severity of the cost of failure, no moves were made to remedy the situation. The sun finally fell below the horizon and Jurai City was bathed in darkness, but the people were more active now than during the daytime as this crisis continued.

* * *

In a desolate region of space, there was a series of interlocking rings held in place by the top and bottom of a massive spinal structure; it was a massive space station, and all around it, starships of many sizes moved into, out of, and around it. Onboard this station, there was a large room where one woman relaxed on a chaise lounge sofa and silently observed the innumerable bright dots through a massive window. The lighting was dim, reflecting the currently relaxed attitude of the room.

A low humming sound came from the room's entrance. "Come in." The woman quickly answered. An older butler, dressed in fine white and black clothing, slowly pushed a small cart with a pot and cups complemented by saucers.

"Another pot of tea, specially brewed to your preferences, superintendent." He announced as he came to a stop right next to the sofa. He took the pot in his hands and carefully poured it into one of the cups before handing it to the woman.

"Thank you." She said, taking the cup from the butler and taking a slow sip. She sighed as she finished. "I should've known we wouldn't get a break. Space Pirate Ryoko finally got bored of wreaking havoc wherever she pleased, but now we have some lunatic planning to blow up a major government institution on Jurai. You'd think after several thousand years of continuous civilization, we'd be over this sort of thing, but I guess I was too optimistic. What do you think?"

"Time passes, but people remain the same despicable beasts that they are. Until people's nature changes into something more... pleasant, we will have to stand guard to keep them in line." He answered. "And I will need to continue my service to provide tea to the superintendent, a necessary duty that I have provided since before you were a cadet in the Galaxy Police Academy."

"That is something I can appreciate." She said before she was interrupted by another beeping sound, this time coming from her desk. The butler walked over and announced his findings.

"It appears that you have a message coming from Jurai. It's Emperor Azusa himself."

"In the flesh? That's a rarity. Put him through." She ordered, standing up and finishing off her cup of tea. She walked over and stood behind her desk. The large windows that showed the stars also served as a screen, and now the screen turned to grey, fizzled, and finally showed a man wearing regal clothing, and straight purple hair and a beard. The Superintendent smiled at the sight; while she would never say such a thing out loud, she always found the contrast between the Emperor's stone-cold expression and the color of his hair to be frankly ridiculous.

"Greetings, Emperor Azusa." She said.

"And I extend my greetings to you, superintendent," Azusa answered. "Unfortunately, while sometimes I indeed contact your out of the need for a casual conversation, this occasion is not one of them."

"Of course. I'm sure you're too busy with whatever strange Juraian things you usually preoccupy yourself with down there."

The emperor looked puzzled at the woman. "You are not from Jurai?"

"I was born on this space station. Yes, this one." She pointed down to the floor to emphasize her seriousness. "My parents were both Galaxy Police officers, and one day, after a particularly tough mission, they decided to unwind and have... oh, I shouldn't say that to royalty!" She chuckled softly before continuing. "Suffice it to say, the Galaxy Police is my home, family, and occupation; you could consider it a three-in-one deal."

"Interesting," Azusa replied, not expecting that sort of explanation. He cleared his throat to ease the awkward silence that threatened to end the conversation before it began. "Excuse me, my curiosity often leads me to ask questions that I shouldn't. As I was saying, I'm sure you are well aware of the hostile takeover of the National Assembly in Jurai City. Their leader, Kagato, threatens to blow up the building unless I appear before him. Now, as you can imagine, I will politely decline his offer. That would leave the resolution of the matter in the hands of the authorities, but that is also problematic."

"Why would that be?"

"Though he is deluded in thinking that his demands will be met, I have the feeling that Kagato is entirely serious. I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if the Jurai City Police created a disaster while they attempted to use force and claw Kagato out of National Assembly. It certainly wouldn't be the first time in recent memory that something like this has happened. That is why I request the assistance of the Galaxy Police to solve this matter. Compared to them, your subordinates are undoubtedly better suited to these... special situations."

The superintendent nodded slowly as she pondered the emperor's proposal. "You're in luck. Though we'd prefer to let the planet-side authorities deal with issues like this, the Galaxy Police is always ready to spring into action whenever we're called upon. I'll gladly send you a few of our fine officers to clean up your mess down there."

Azusa nodded "I expect that your personnel with be sufficient to quickly snuff out the dreams of these lunatics."

"Of course, emperor. I won't let that happen."

The screen blackened, and the superintendent sat down in her office chair and quietly pondered her next move as she unconsciously reached out for another cup of tea. After being quickly relived by the butler, who now quietly left with an empty kettle, she turned towards her desk and looked over to the spherical object within arm's reach; the sphere opened up on contact and emitted a holographic display. While moving her hand through this display seemed inconspicuous looking, the Superintendent had just performed a very important function. This spherical device was what allowed her to instantly contact every single division of the GP within a few seconds and allowed her to control the entire space station from her office.

She turned around in her chair, again facing the large window-screen. Her call was soon picked up, and she was staring at one of the colonels of the Intelligence Division; it was Colonel Hakodate, a man recognizable by his graying hair and prominent widow's peak.

"Yes, superintendent?" A man on the other end answered.

"That was three-point eight seconds, Hakodate. Very sloppy of you." She commented. "I expect a three-second delay maximum, no more."

He bowed his head in apology. "Sorry, we're dealing with a few minor technical difficulties on our end, so we're a little hectic right now." He answered, bowing apologetically. "I'll send a report to you about it once we're done resolving them. Anyway, did you need something from Intelligence?"

"I want one of your senior staff sent to my office immediately." She ordered.

"Any senior staff?" He asked. Assuming he was correct, he looked away and waved to someone standing off-screen. "Hey, Ishizuka, you're up! Go meet with Fujikawa."

"What? Didn't I already tell you that I'm busy ironing out the bugs on Corporal Obato's system? I can't go anywhere before I get it running again!" A younger, irritated voice responded.

"I'll take over. Just go meet with Fujikawa already," He repeated. "Don't make me issue an order, lieutenant."

"You couldn't even fix the... oh, nevermind. Have fun trying to bypass this computer's secondary security encryption manually!"

The superintendent softly chuckled as the transmission ended. She turned back around to her desk and, after finishing her second cup of tea, began to interact with the spherical computer again. "Now, let's find a few good officers suitable to send to hell and back..."

* * *

The afternoon air was cool and pleasant as it breezed outside. The sunlight glistened over a small, calm lake in the middle of this part of the Japanese countryside that remained untouched by civilization-at-large except for a single modern-looking story house that sat near this lake. A great hill was positioned nearby the house with a set of steps that began at the very bottom and lead to the top where there was a well-kept pathway leading to a small Shinto shrine. A boy busied himself with meticulously sweeping the stone pathway while inside the shrine, an old man dressed in white garbs sat amidst the smell of incense as he wrote calligraphy. He dropped the brush he was using back into the inkstone on the low table in front of him and picked up a piece of paper, reading aloud the freshly-painted words to himself.

_Autumn wind flows by_

_We reflect on the past year_

_Embracing each other_

"Well, I suppose I've done worse." The man said to himself, putting down his paper and taking another sip of his tea. He stood up from his mat and slowly walked to the door and made his way outside, his eyes scanning the shrine for his grandson. "Tenchi! Tenchi!" He called to him, who looked over and immediately dropped his broom and ran over to the man.

"Need something, grandpa?" Tenchi asked him.

Grandpa looked over at where Tenchi was just sweeping, and then at the other corners of the shrine where, thanks to his eyeglasses, he could see the slightest collection of dust and debris. "You're getting slow Tenchi, you should've finished sweeping this entire shrine by now. How are you going to advance in your training and take over my responsibilities of maintaining this shrine if you take too long to sweep it clean?"

Tenchi smiled as he put a hand behind his head and shrugged casually. "Hey, there's no need to rush things, is there? If I did, then you'd make me do it all over again. Don't think I've already forgotten about the last time it happened, either."

"That's not the answer I expected from you, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's wrong," Grandpa replied. "There is wisdom in those words. 'If a fisherman worries about what he will catch tomorrow, then today's catch will go rotten and he will be left hungry!' Maybe your father Nobuyuki could learn a thing or two from you; he needs to relax more than any of us."

"Well, he does have to work hard to support a house with us and a bunch of women, one of them with an unquenchable thirst for sake. Good thing designing architecture pays well or else we'd be living on instant ramen and rice alone!"

Grandpa smiled at that remark. "Very true, Tenchi." His smile faded and soon his face turned into once grim and serious. Tenchi looked on suspiciously.

"Hey, you look pretty down, grandpa? Something wrong?" He asked.

It was a long, awkward second before Katsuhito replied to Tenchi. "I don't know. I feel... something. I feel as though something important is happening far, far away; yet, I can feel it's effect so very close here. Tenchi, I think our lives here will change, for better or worse I am not sure, but I know that something will happen."

"Well, the only thing we can do is hope that it isn't more trouble!" Tenchi said optimistically. He looked towards the sky for a moment and noticed the special shade of orange that signified the short transition from late afternoon to evening. "Oh, it's getting late. I'll go and see if Sasami has finished preparing dinner for us yet."

Tenchi bowed deeply to his grandfather and walked down the steps of the hill away from the shrine and back towards his house. He walked next to the glistening lake before the back of the house came into view. There, he saw a purple-haired girl dressed in fancy layered clothing sweeping the porch right in front of the glass sliding door that led inside. Tenchi walked over and the girl soon put down her broom and looked over at him. "Oh, Lord Tenchi, I didn't see you there. It's so good to see you again so soon."

"Oh, it is, Ayeka?" Tenchi asked hesitantly. "Well, it's good to see you as well." He attempted to begin walking around her when she moved closer to him.

"So, you... you came here to see me?" Ayeka asked. "Oh, such a wondrous thing for you to do, Lord Tenchi! I must say, you are a true gentleman; you attend to the needs of a lovely princess, and not that wicked witch who slobbers over you like some beastly animal!"

Tenchi looked slightly off to the side of Ayeka out of embarrassment. "Oh, well, I didn't come for… I was just going to go inside and..."

"Who are you calling a witch, Princess Airhead?" A rough voice came out of nowhere. Tenchi and Ayeka looked around before a silver-haired woman appeared from below, phasing up through the ground and appearing on equal footing with the other two and pushing them away from each other. "You think Tenchi walked from the shrine to see you?! Get real, he came looking for me, because unlike you, I know how to have a fun time around here! Right Tenchi?" She asked him as she hugged tightly him from behind, immediately angering Ayeka.

Seeing clearly how the gasoline was about to be set alight with all three of them in one place, Tenchi quickly forced Ryoko off of him and started to walk towards the sliding door, looking back at Ryoko and Ayeka with an innocent smile. "Well, uh, the truth is… I walked over here to see Sasami, I wanted to know how dinner was coming along." He said as he slid open the door. "Well... see you later, bye!" He quickly finished and closed the door behind him.

Tenchi took a deep breath and made his way over to the kitchen where, unsurprisingly, a blue-haired girl with two substantial ponytails busied herself with all sorts of ingredients sprawled over the kitchen table. The girl finished chopping up a carrot before she turned around, apron following her, and looked excitedly at the boy who let himself in. "Hello, Tenchi!"

"Hello, Sasami," Tenchi replied. "You're busy as ever, I see. Well, what's for dinner tonight? Something new I hope?"

"You hope right! I'm trying out this new recipe for Miso soup that has both vegetables and fish as ingredients. It's almost finished, too; I can't wait for you all to try it out!" Sasami said happily before again busying herself with her cooking.

"I'll be looking forward to it, Sasami. I'll go call the other back here." Tenchi said as he walked out of the kitchen. Just as he was about to leave out the back and return to the shrine, Tenchi heard a knock from the front door.

"Coming." He yelled out as he approached the door. What greeted him on the other side were two familiar women. One had tanned skin and overflowing golden hair that was held in place by a red hair tie. The other woman had paler skin in comparison and long and beautiful teal hair that was complemented by a prominent red headband and red earrings. Both of them were wearing blue jeans and colorful sweaters that symbolized the vibrant lifestyle in urban Japan.

"Kiyone and Mihoshi, I didn't know you were visiting us again!" Tenchi said greeting the two women. With courtesy, Tenchi held the door wide open and letting them into the house, reminding them to take their shoes off before stepping on the floor, of course. "How long has it been since you've been over here, anyway?" He asked them.

"Oh, just around a week I think," Mihoshi said. "Time sure flies when you're busy with work and all, especially when you are working for the Galaxy Police! Oh, and being forced to work two jobs at once is a real pain, especially when you can't afford to take the bus and have to walk several kilometers back and for..."

"Yeah, I think you get the idea, Tenchi." Kiyone interrupted. "Mihoshi just thought that we should see you all again, so here we are. How are you doing?"

"Oh, just fine. Nothing much has changed around here." Tenchi responded as he walked the two women into the living room. "Well, it's almost dinner time I suspect, so you two can make yourselves comfortable while I go get the others." He turned around and walked away and out of sight of the two women. Kiyone nodded to herself and made her way over the nearest sofa and wasted no time in lying down on it, slumping down in the process.

"I'm exhausted. My feet are killing me from all that walking we had to do just to get here." Kiyone said.

"That's why I've been trying to tell you to move the Yagami over to Okayama. We wouldn't have to rely on public transportation." Mihoshi replied.

"Yeah, as if the citizens of Okayama won't bat an eye at the giant red spaceship flying in and out of their city daily. What Earth year is it, Mihoshi, 1997? It could 2097 right now and these terrestrials will probably still be scratching their heads trying to figure out advanced solar technology, let alone spaceships."

"Then why don't we just move into this house? Tenchi wouldn't mind if we lived here." Mihoshi said as she sat down on the side of the sofa opposite of Kiyone. "And we wouldn't have to commute from the city just to get to the Yagami. "

Kiyone looked over at Mihoshi unamused. "We can't do that." She said sternly. "Have you considered how much of a burden we would be to Tenchi and his family? He has enough problems to deal with as it is and it'd be rude of us to make it worse on him."

"You're being overdramatic. Tenchi loves our company! I bet he would welcome us without a second thought. Plus, we can quit our boring jobs in Okayama and spend all our time..."

"I mean it, Mihoshi!" Kiyone yelled out. She was annoyed with Mihoshi's suggestion, but after realizing the extent to which she raised her voice, she felt she'd gone too far. "I'm sorry, I guess I'm a little tired. Just let me rest a little before dinner, alright?"

"Oh... alright Kiyone. I'll see if Sasami could use some help with dinner!" Mihoshi said as she stood up and left for the kitchen.

Alone, Kiyone soon shifted her weight on the sofa and looked out the nearest window at the trees and forest near the house, where the autumn leaves flowed to and fro in the wind; as time went on Kiyone lamented that the closet she could get to experience the feeling of those leaves was to was to stare longingly at them from within the confines of this house. She could, of course, go outside to try and catch the leaves herself, but Kiyone knew that would be a fruitless endeavor, as those leaves would be just too high up for her to reach and too fast for her to ever catch.

"What... am I even doing here?" She muttered to herself.

Night soon came, and as the moon glistened over the quiet lake, the house was alive with the chatter and activity of many people. Katsuhito and Tenchi's father, Nobuyuki, were discussing a faraway topic on a sofa while Tenchi, Ryoko, Ayeka, Sasami, Mihoshi, Kiyone and Washu-who only now broke from her isolation in her lab behind the old closet for dinner- had seated themselves around the low table in the dining room. Sasami had finished placing the finishing touches of tonight's dinner on the table, and she quickly seated herself down; soon everyone gave chanted their grace and descended upon the food before them.

Tenchi was the first to try out the new miso soup that Sasami made. A minute went by before he grasped a small piece of fish with his chopsticks and ate it, downing it with the broth of the soup. "Wow, this is great! I think you've found another great dish, Sasami." He said approvingly.

"I'm so glad you like it, Tenchi," Sasami replied. She looked over at the others, who were all silently enjoying the food as much as Tenchi, all except one. Kiyone held a bowl of miso soup and chopsticks in her hands, but she was looking down aimlessly at the table, seemingly lost in her void of existence; she hadn't said a single word apart from grace.

"What about you, Kiyone? Do you like the miso soup I made?" She asked with uncertainty, but Kiyone didn't respond, almost as if she didn't even hear Sasami in the first place. "Kiyone?" Sasami repeated.

Kiyone's head snapped back up and turned toward the young princess. Her eyes blinked twice before she responded. "...Oh! Sorry, Sasami. I was just thinking about something." Kiyone said as she quickly took a sip from her bowl. "Yeah, this miso soup is great!"

Meanwhile, Ryoko was so far enjoying herself. She had brought a bottle of sake-brand new from the nearest convenience store in Okayama- to the dinner table, and, to the annoyance of Ayeka, began pouring the drink into small cups and wasted no time emptying. After enough rounds, she turned her eyes to Tenchi with a face that reeked with booze and euphoria, "Hey, Tenchi." Ryoko slurred out, letting the empty cup of sake in her hand fall to the floor and roll away. "How long do you think it'll be before you finally make your decision?"

"Decision?" Tenchi repeated in confusion as he looked at Ryoko. "What do you mean, 'decision'?"

"Oh, you dummy!" Ryoko replied annoyed. "You need to choose one of us here to be yours. I suggest Ryoko, personally. She's never let you down before or harmed you, has she?" She was rubbing a finger in circles around Tenchi's chest. That came to an abrupt end as Ryoko's hair was painfully pulled back by Ayeka, who reached around Tenchi to intervene with Ryoko's antics.

"Get off him, you leech! As if Lord Tenchi would ever want to be married to a sake-addicted slouch like yourself. He prefers the well-mannered and beautiful princess right in front of him, doesn't he?" She asked, grasping his hands into hers. "And need I remind you that you nearly killed Lord Tenchi when you rammed Ryo-Ohki into my ship Ryo-Oh in orbit that one time?"

"Uhh... hey, that's a complete lie!" Ryoko slurred back, slapping Ayeka and Tenchi's hands apart fiercely. "Ryo-Oh rammed into Ryo-Ohki! Right, Tenchi? Right?"

Tenchi gulped heavily. He didn't know for certain, obviously, but past experiences told him that the next few words that he uttered would mean the difference between sleeping that night in his bed or outside in the grass near the ashes of his house, again. "Well, um, I don't r-"

"Please, Lord Tenchi, don't tell me you take the words coming out of that drunkard's foul mouth seriously! She can't be trusted!" Ayeka interrupted. "Just know that I would never put you in danger, unlike that silver-haired siren who spends every waking moment putting your life in jeopardy in her attempts to seduce you!"

As the argument raged on, Kiyone was slowly growing more and more frustrated with the back-and-forth bickering between the princess and the space pirate. The anger she attempted to suppress was evident when she broke her chopsticks in her hand before she put down her miso soup and put her hands to her face, leaning over onto the table and trying to drown out the noise coming from the end of the table. She moaned quietly, and Mihoshi looked over at her partner worryingly.

"Hey, Kiyone, are you all right?" She asked, shaking her lightly on the shoulder. "Let me guess, a stomach problem?"

"I...I.." Kiyone began, but she stopped as she looked back over towards Ayeka and Ryoko, both of them growing in anger until a boiling point was reached.

"Oh, that's it! I will not allow Lord Tenchi to be deceived by a lowly criminal!" Ayeka yelled as she stood up, summoning her miniature logs resembling Azaka and Kamidake.

"You sure about that, little girl? Let's see if you'll put your money where your mouth is!" Ryoko said as she too stood up and challenged brights balls of energy in her hands.

"Hey, hey girls! Don't do this! Not again! Please, take it outside!" Tenchi pleaded desperately, but neither of them listened. Sparks of electricity flared all around the dining room, and Tenchi moved back a bit to keep himself out of the crossfire. It seemed that, once again, he would have to ask the genius scientist Washu to revert the house to a point in time before whatever was about to happen to it.

Instead, Kiyone finally snapped. She slammed her hands and the table and stood up and looked toward Ayeka and Ryoko not simply with anger in her face, but more akin to an intense and pronounced hatred of them. This was so noticeable that two girls stopped channeling energies from their bodies and looked over at Kiyone in confusion."I can't take this anymore!" She yelled. "Why is it that every time you two happen to be in the same room you have to start arguing over Tenchi?!"

Her sudden outburst caused everyone else in the room to go dead silent. Even Katsuhito and Nobuyuki who were talking to each other on the sofa nearby went silent as they looked over to the scene at the dinner table.

"Don't you two ever get tired of this shtick? She asked them angrily. "I just don't get it. I don't understand how he could mean so much to you, to the point where you'd be willing to destroy this entire house to win his favor or approval! This must be what you two focus on all day, every day, isn't it? Making sure that nobody but yourself can have him." She said, pausing for a moment to catch her breath. She could see that everyone in the room was focused on her, including Mihoshi, whose usually happy face now seemed muted and depressed as she sat next to Kiyone; it's as if time itself had granted Kiyone this one instance to stop all other events to vent her frustration.

"Well, do you know how my day went?" She continued. "I had to wake up at five-thirty in the morning to catch the train to Okayama, walk several kilometers just get to my first job at Freshness Burger just on time, only to deal with angry, ungrateful customers and having excusing the mess that Mihoshi made out of the beverage machine to the manager. Then I had to walk several more kilometers to my afternoon job at the construction site downtown. Standing in thirty-degree heat for hours on end was only interrupted when I had to apologize to my boss when Mihoshi accidentally dropped a steel beam from a crane and nearly killed someone! Oh, sorry, I almost forgot to mention that I then had to give him a second excuse to leave after I get a GP alert about some idiot attempting to establish a pirate republic on Europa! Now here I am after an exhausting day of work, torture, and probably getting fired from one of my two jobs, and my one moment of reprieve, dinner, is about to be ruined because you Tenchi is too nice to just say 'no' to you hotheads!"

Ayeka and Ryoko now looked at Kiyone with a legitimate surprise. The last person they expected to lash out at them would be the calm and collected GP officer. Kiyone by now was heaving heavily from her shouting. "I swear if you two refuse to grow out of your pathetic and destructive childishness, I... I'm never coming ba-" she stopped mid-sentence. The other looked on in confusion before they all realized as well that a beeping sound that had been quietly emanating in the background suddenly became much louder and pronounced.

"What's that noise?" Tenchi asked as he now stood up as well and turned to Washu. "Washu, you didn't leave any of your experiments running wild in the lab, did you? If its another one of Ryo-Ohki's 'parents'..."

"No, not at all Tenchi," The red-haired scientist replied innocent-sounding. "That was an isolated incident. I've taken more precautions since then so it couldn't be something in the lab... really."

After a pause in which nobody responded, Tenchi stood up and walked towards the source of the sound, going through the hallways until he reached and opened the door leading outside to the back of the house and the clotheslines. The girls quickly followed in tow, just as curious as Tenchi; all except for Kiyone, who instead silently sat back down at the low table, covering her face with her hands.

"Well, it seems to be coming from over here," Tenchi said before walking over and sifting through the clothes on the line. He saw an unusual article of clothing and pulled it off. With its blue and grey colors, Tenchi realized immediately it was a Galaxy Police uniform. "Huh? What's this still doing here?"

Mihoshi looked over and immediately snatched the uniform away from Tenchi. She dug her hand into both of the pockets for a moment before she grabbed something and took it out for everyone else to see. It was a pink cube the size of a hand, and Mihoshi was overjoyed by the sight of it. "Oh, so THAT'S where it was!" She said.

"Where what was?" Kiyone asked, having finally walked over out of curiosity at the commotion. Her tone was calmer compared to just a minute ago, though retaining a hint of irritation and displeasure. She looked down at the pink cube in Mihoshi's hands for a moment before looking over at the opened washing machine and finally back at Mihoshi, staring right into her big blue eyes. After a second-long and awkward stare, Kiyone fiercely grabbed Mihoshi by her shirt and pulled her close, causing the cube to fall out of Mihoshi's hand down onto the ground.

"You're telling me that you left both your Control Cube and a uniform here for an entire week?!" Kiyone furiously asked Mihoshi, "Do you have any idea how important both those items are to performing your duties as a Galaxy Police Officer?"

"Um, well I understand that it's pretty important," Mihoshi replied meekly, "But it was just an honest mistake. I must've thought that I had already taken it before we left last time, and I usually keep my control cube in my uniform so I don't lose it on the Yagami. Besides, it doesn't seem the cube was damaged anyway; if anything, it's a good thing that it gets washed from time to time, right?"

Kiyone was dumbfounded for a moment before her face beamed red and angry from Mihoshi's remark. She grabbed Mihoshi by the shoulders and was about to unleash another wave of ridicule before she took a deep breath and slowly let go of her. She walked over to where the cube fell and began to tinker and twist the device in different directions and stop the beeping noise that emanated from it.

"What is it now?" Tenchi asked, oblivious to the nature of the mysterious object. "Trouble?"

"No, it's... it's the Galaxy Police." Kiyone answered.

"Them?" Ryoko repeated. "Don't tell me they're trying to get you two to arrest me again. You better tell them that I'm not going anywhere!"

"No, I don't think it's that. We only get calls on our Control Cubes in emergencies. This one is classified as a Level Nine message; ones coming from the office of the GP Superintendent herself. Let me read this... 'Galaxy Police Officers Kiyone Makibi and Mihoshi Kuramitsu are hereby ordered to return to Galaxy Police Headquarters and report to Superintendent Airi Fujikawa within thirty intergalactic hours. Failure to comply will result in serious reprimands." Kiyone turned to Mihoshi. "We don't have any time to waste. I'll get the Yagami up and running, so get whatever you left inside the house and hurry back."

Mihoshi nodded and briskly walked back into the house, while Kiyone ran into the nearby forest.

"Now then Tenchi, where were we?" Ryoko as she slowly wrapped herself around Tenchi. "Don't mind that uptight Kiyone, she doesn't understand you in the slightest. She's just jealous because she knows she has nothing compared to me."

"You never learn," Ayeka said as she again pulled painfully on Ryoko's hair, freeing Tenchi from her grasp.

Kiyone reached the Yagami after a short walk to the clearing in the forest. Looking up at the center of the ship, a large hole opened up, and blue energy enveloped her, causing her to rise into the air. She made it through and landed on the floor of the ship. After getting dressed in her GP uniform, she made their way to the cockpit in the front. Upon entering, she walked over at the main control panel and began interacting with the touch-keyboard, typing a certain command unique to every single registered ship used by the Galaxy Police. The roar of the Yagami's engines and the activation of various screens and instruments told Kiyone that she had performed the command successfully. Satisfied, she sat down in the nearest seat. She found herself having slumped into the seat and looking up aimlessly at the ceiling.

"Back to headquarters, huh? As long as it got me away from here, I wouldn't mind crossing the entire universe."

* * *

**PREVIEW OF**

**NEXT PROGRAM:**

"Hello, I'm Kiyone. While I imagined that something special was in store for us on Jurai, I could've never imagined us getting deployed into a task force to rescue Jurai's National Assembly! And the fact that... 'she' had to come along with us was even more strange."

"Yeah, but why did we of all people have to come back and do this? We finally got settled on Earth, only to be ordered by GP to travel to Jurai just to put ourselves in danger? I want to go home, Kiyone!"

"Quit complaining Mihoshi! Just keep your head down and don't do anything stupid! Oh, I can positively taste that promotion coming my… our way! The next episode of Tenchi Muyo: Miho-Kiyo Complex… what kind of name is that? Oh, nevermind. **The next episode: _Operation Codename: Hangyaku_**_**!"**_

"It's unquestionably dangerous!"

* * *

**Author's Note #1: What is Miho-Kiyo Complex? **

If you're reading down here, then it appears you've finished the first episode of a long and ambitious fanfiction.

It's a simple story of how I came up with this whole idea. I had recently watched the majority of Tenchi Muyo and its various independent storylines and I became very interested in Kiyone and Mihoshi, two members of the Galaxy Police who don't seem to do much apart from counting the stars and giving speeding tickets to space ships...in outer space.

At the same time I had also just finished watching the first season of **_Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex_**, an anime which I consider a masterpiece for its well-developed cast of characters such as Motoko (Major) Kusanagi, Batou, and Togusa; great animation and especially CG; and most importantly, it's fascinating portrayal of a futuristic society that has become adapted to the cyberization of its people while still dealing with the eternal problems of government corruption and red tape, crime, poverty, corporate blackmail, and tiptoeing through tense diplomacy among hostile countries.

After seeing the potential for combing the suspense and thrill of Stand Alone Complex and the blank canvas provided by the science-fantasy universe of Tenchi Muyo, I quickly came up with the concept of Miho-Kiyo Complex: a crime/suspense story starring Kiyone and Mihoshi as they joined a special operations unit and tackle strange and special cases across the galaxy; as well as the convoluted process of comprehending their own existence.

If you're wondering about where this story would fit into the exceedingly convoluted Tenchi canon, well, I suppose that Miho-Kiyo Complex is an independent OVA series, just like Magical Girl Pretty Sammy; it's the most Tenchi answer I can give you. All jokes aside, I find that it's the perfect answer since it means I can play god and not get bogged down with whatever annoying technicalities that are in the Ryo-Ohki OVA series.

Now, if it wasn't obvious enough from reading this first episode, I want to state clearly that **Miho-Kiyo Complex is not a Tenchi Muyo story**, at least not in the traditional sense. It doesn't focus on the misadventures of Tenchi Masaki and his harem family, because people have already done that to death and I'm not interested in that kind of story in the first place. Rather, I see _Miho-Kiyo Complex _as a story that takes advantage of Tenchi Muyo's blank canvas to add my unique blend of old and new ideas. While I won't be cocky as to suggest that this is the beginning of "a new genre itself" similar to _Cowboy Bebop_, I will say that you should be ready and excited for a story that doesn't play by the rules of what you'd expect from a traditional Tenchi Muyo story, fanfiction or otherwise.

That being said, if you like what I have to offer with this new story, I insist that you **favorite** it, give a comprehensive (please tell me what you liked and suggest improvements ) **review**, tell your friends, fellow fanfiction connoisseurs, and Tenchi Muyo fans who might also be interested, **and stay in touch** for the next episode, which will come out in the near future.


	2. Operation Codename: Hangyaku

"Yagami," Kiyone called out as she walked into the cockpit and made a few final adjustments to the collar on her uniform vest. Right away, a hole in the cockpit's ceiling opened up and out came a mushroom-shaped robot. It's two large eyes quickly adjusted and focused on the officer.

"Hello again, Officer Makibi. Where shall we be off to now?" Yagami asked.

"Headquarters, just as soon as Mihoshi returns."

"Very good… then again, I'm sure you don't NEED to bring Officer Kuramitsu every single time we have to depart this system. I've been theorizing that perhaps her performance will increase if she's given more time to rest on Terra."

"Negative. You call it 'rest', but I call it being 'Mihoshi'. I don't need to remind you of her certain 'tendencies' when she's alone, do I? Besides, I do have a reason to bring Mihoshi this time. Now, hurry up and run diagnostics." She commanded.

"Of course, Officer Makibi. Just a suggestion."

Only Tenchi remained outside near the house and looking into the forest; the others had gone back inside to continue with dinner. His patience was rewarded when Mihoshi emerged from the house, haphazardly holding a bundle of clothes and Galaxy Police gear.

"So, you're leaving Earth for now?" Tenchi asked. "GP business I imagine."

"Yeah, Kiyone and I have to return to Galaxy Police Headquarters for a special assignment; they didn't tell us much about it though. Don't worry, I'm sure we'll both be back very soon!" Mihoshi said happily.

"That's good to hear," Tenchi replied. "It's just too bad you have to go, but I guess that's a part of your job. Alright, I'll give the news to everybody else inside; you shouldn't keep Kiyone waiting. Stay safe out there, Mihoshi."

Mihoshi raised her right hand to her forehead in a salute to Tenchi before she rushed back to the Yagami.

"Oh, and Mihoshi?" Tenchi began, catching Mihoshi's attention just before she disappeared into the forest again. "Never mind. It's not important right now."

"Mandatory electrical systems safety check, complete, dual ultra-energy reactor stabilization, complete; artificial gravity generator, online; navigation computer set to Galaxy Police Headquarters in Sector 00, inputted; interstellar communication equipment, online; cabin pressurization systems, online; armaments and shields; fully charged and on standby. All systems are fully functional, as usual." Yagami answered.

"Good." Kiyone turned around in her swivel seat and looked at Mihoshi, who was walking by and looked to be nearly overwhelmed with a hapharzardly-gathered bundle of clothes. "Are you ready to leave, Mihoshi?"

"Yeah," She said. "I told Tenchi that we're going to Headquarters. I already have what I need on the Yagami, too, so we can launch right now!" Mihoshi said enthusiastically.

"You're sure you didn't leave anything behind, again?" Kiyone asked Mihoshi suspiciously. "Anything at all?"

"No, I didn't! I have my control cube with me and…" Mihoshi leaned back too far in her attempt to see around the bundle of clothes, and she lost her balance and tumbled to the floor. She quickly stood up and looked at her partner as if nothing happened. "What else does a Galaxy Police Officer need?" She asked innocently.

Kiyone chuckled. "I hear balance and common sense are bargain these days, but what do I know? Alright, we're launching." She turned back around to Yagami and nodded to the robot.

From the surface, Tenchi saw the Yagami as it roared into action. The branches of nearby trees were bent away from the force coming from the thrust of Yagami's engines, and the whole of nature woke up from its slumber by the loud noise. Slowly, the crimson starship lifted off the forest floor into the air. Then the ship tilted upwards toward the stars above the heavens and slowly climbed into the sky. It rapidly picked up speed and instantly broke the sound barrier with a huge crash in the air and whizzed away from Earth faster than a bullet.

Tenchi looked on as the ship soared above and beyond his imagination and became a flickering light that slowly faded away before being swallowed whole by the darkness.

"If only I could be like them for once… if only I could be…" His train of thought was interrupted by familiar feminine voices coming from the house.

"Tenchi! What the hell are you still doing out there? Come on! There's still plenty of sake left!"

"Dump it in the lake for all I care! I won't let Lord Tenchi taste a single drop if he doesn't want to!"

"Oh... coming!" He said as he walked back into the house.

* * *

**Episode Two:**

_**Operation Codename: Hangyaku**_

The National Assembly's speaking chamber that earlier was alive with noise and debate was now eerily silent and lifeless, as though not a single soul remained. Most of the lighting had been shut off, leaving much of the large room bathed in darkness save for the windows that let in the moonlight and the lights from the authorities just outside. In the pristine seat reserved for the prime minister, Kagato rested his chin on his hands as he silently stared into the darkness.

The deputies comprising the National Assembly sat petrified in their seats; they knew that they couldn't be seen individually, but they felt as though they were the prey being continually stalked by the predator known as Kagato. Every sound or motion they made could attract the attention of this predator; and given the fact that one of their own has already perished, it was not shy to show its fangs.

One of these men was Deputy Kiro. A fellow deputy sitting next to him leaned and whispered into his ear. "You... you don't think that madman is going to kill the Prime Minister, do you?"

"Why not?" Kiro whispered back. "He's already killed Suboru without hesitation, so he's not afraid to carry out his threats. But what worries me is that if he does kill him, the authorities outside will hasten their folly plans and get the rest of us killed."

The man nodded slowly. "Yes. It just fills me with fury to know that we are entirely powerless. Being pawns in a madman's game does not sit well with me."

Kiro patted his fellow on the shoulder. "I suppose it is best to not think about it. Just pray to Tsunami that we don't meet our end here. At the very least, I suspect Kagato will not penalize us for praying."

One of Kagato's men walked entered the room and approached him quickly. When the man walked into the faint light, the blue and gold colors that symbolize Jurai's Republican Guard caught Kagato's attention.

"I assumed you would have discarded that silly outfit by now," Kagato commented with a tint of laughter.

The henchman shrugged "Honestly, it's very comfortable to wear. Anyway, boss, it looks like the Emperor isn't going to pay us and the National Assembly a visit after all."

"Yes, that has become exceedingly clear to me now. Emperor Azusa disappoints me immensely, but there is little we can do about that now."

"Well… what ARE we supposed to do now?" The man asked assertively. "We're surrounded, you know. The JCDP have this entire district sealed off, we're stuck here. Eventually, they're going to try to force their way into here too."

Kagato waved a hand in front of his subordinate's face and weakly smiled. "The situation is not that simple. They have completely blocked us from exiting, true, but we have completely blocked them from entering; I made you see to that, didn't I? They also know, or at least think they know, that we brought an explosive with us as insurance. They obviously would not want to risk the lives of innocent politicians, so they are going to stay right where they are, for now."

"That makes me feel a little better, but still, what is our goal here? If the emperor is not going to show, what's the point of this whole thing? This just seems like a waste of time!" He said with annoyance.

Kagato laughed softly, "On the contrary, my friend, our time has been most productive. My main task has already been fulfilled, believe it or not. In starting this little incident at the heart of the Juraian Empire, I have caused a name, 'Kagato', to ring soundly at every corner of this city and soon this entire Galaxy."

The man was now incredibly confused by Kagato's answer. "You did all this just for media attention? I don't get it. Not one bit."

Kagato smiled. "Do not underestimate the power of words. Now, think about it from their perspective; today, a group that everyone thought was relegated to the annals of history has suddenly returned and taken hostage Jurai's National Assembly, almost without effort I may add. That fascinates and boggles the average Juraian's mind, wouldn't you agree? To them, we appear as magicians; we just made the impossible possible."

The man nodded his head slightly in agreement, but he wasn't satisfied completely. "But… but that'll all go to waste if we don't get out here! The clock is ticking, and we'll be exterminated for good this time if we don't come up with any more magic tricks!"

"I do not require magic to solve this problem. But, if you are still worried, then perhaps you can go and decorate the interior with the 'gifts' we brought with us." Kagato said as he pointed towards the rectangular object sitting inert nearby.

"Wait, you're telling me those are...? S-so you want to pull the old…? I understand. Of course, boss, I'll get right to it." He said hurriedly as he walked over and examined the object.

"Have faith, my friend. No matter what happens here, this is not the end of anything, only the beginning... oh how have I not noticed that horrid stench right next to me?" He asked in surprise. "Be so kind as to get rid of it!"

* * *

Across space, a red streak known as the Yagami soared past stars and planets at an impressive speed. At the top middle portion of the ship was the cockpit, currently occupied by Kiyone. She had her legs stretched out over the dashboard and her hands were holding the back of her head as she leaned in her swivel chair. The Teal-haired GP Officer was silent as she stared into the vastness of space whizzing by in front of her.

Apart from the low, ambient noises coming from various electrical equipment, things were silent. She found this silence comforting, especially after another day of hearing heavy construction equipment, angry customers, and the roars of Ryoko and Ayeka as they tried to kill each other. Indeed, Kiyone could now slowly slip into the depths of her consciousness; she felt the tense muscles in her body gradually loosen and relax. Unconsciously, her eyelids began to shut and...

"WAAAH!"

A loud crash broke Kiyone's trance. Her eyes flung open and her mind instantly became alert as she sprang up in her chair and spun around towards the noise. Unsurprisingly the sound came from Mihoshi, now dressed in her uniform. Her blonde hair was strewn all over the floor and covered her face right outside the Yagami's cockpit.

"Let me guess, those new pairs of boots they issued us last month are still giving you trouble?" Kiyone remarked, turning back around to the view of the stars. "What did you want, anyway? I don't need any help piloting right now."

Mihoshi took gave herself to slowly stand back up before she said, "Oh, I just wanted to ask: was GP Headquarters ALWAYS this far away? When are we going to get there?"

Kiyone rolled her eyes in annoyance.

Yagami emerged from the ceiling again and quickly turned to Mihoshi. "If my navigation data is correct. We've just passed by the outer reaches of Seniwa's territory and GP Headquarters is 184.1 Standard Interstellar Units away now. At our current speed through Ultra-Warp, we should arrive at Headquarters in approximately twenty-eight minutes, thirty-five seconds and counting."

"That good enough for you, Mihoshi, or do we also have to remind you of the ratio of light-years to SIU?" Kiyone chimed in while Yagami quietly retreated into the ceiling.

"N-no, I remember the ratio. Thirty-six to one."

"Thirty-eight, Mihoshi!" Kiyone shot back. "That's one of the first things we were taught in our naval course, thirty-eight to one!"

"Alright, alright, I'll remember from now on." She responded defensively. "Oh, I just wish that we were there now! I'm hungry!"

One of Kiyone's eyebrows raised itself as she turned and looked back at Mihoshi with confusion. "What, all the snacks you keep stashed in your room isn't enough? Besides, you just ate dinner at Tenchi's house, didn't you?" Kiyone asked.

"Well, I was, until we were interrupted. I can't believe it, the day we have to return to Headquarters and Sasami made really good miso soup for dinner!"

Kiyone sighed. "Admittedly, that miso soup was very good," Kiyone said. "Look, just hold off on your appetite for a little longer, alright? The last thing we need is for you to get distracted when we're meeting with the Superintendent."

There was silence between the two for a while, but while Kiyone was calm and absorbed by her thoughts, Mihoshi was timidly pivoting in her seat and lightly scratched her head as she looked down at the floor. Kiyone eventually noticed her behavior, knowing that Mihoshi was trying to say something. Eventually, Mihoshi cleared her throat quiet and spoke up. "You know." she began. "What you were talking about at dinner..."

"Drop it, Mihoshi." Kiyone immediately interrupted. "I don't want to talk about it."

Mihoshi looked away in disappointment. "I… sorry I brought it up. Um… I should probably take a shower before we arrive at Headquarters," she said meekly, knowing full well that Kiyone would see through that excuse. She stood up from her chair and walked out of the cockpit and again left Kiyone alone in silence.

"Was I just cranky from a bad day at work, or did I mean it?" Kiyone asked herself. "Oh, it doesn't matter anymore. I just need something else to think about."

More time passed before the navigation computer showed that they had nearly arrived at their destination. The ship immediately dropped itself out of space-warp and soon a great structure came into view from the cockpit. Kiyone was now sitting straight up in her seat and Mihoshi walked back into the cockpit, her golden hair glistening slightly from recently being washed.

A red light then began blinking from one of the screens- a hailing order from headquarters. Kiyone maneuvered in her seat and pressed on the button. On the main view, a tired-looking man tore himself away from his holographic computer and addressed them.

"Incoming Galaxy Police vessel, please identify yourselves." A cold, monotone voice said.

"This is Detectives First-Class Kiyone Makibi and Mihoshi Kuramitsu on board the Yagami- Designation Four-Seven-Zero-Five-Eight-One-Zero-Three. Requesting permission to board GP Headquarters. Over." Kiyone replied.

He turned back over to his computer and typed in the provided designation. "Standby. Identification has been confirmed. Permission granted, Yagami. Your arrived has been predetermined; you will land in Hangar 5, Platform D."

"Understood. Out." Kiyone said, switching off the transmission. "Alright, Mihoshi, make sure you keep all of your Earth snacks on the Yagami, otherwise we'll get swamped with security thinking it's narcotics... Mihoshi, did you hear what I… Mihoshi?" She looked over at her partner, who somehow fell asleep in her chair. For some reason, Kiyone was tipped over the edge from seeing Mihoshi dozed off while she was talking to her. She faced Mihoshi in her swivel chair and firmly kicked her in the shoulder, sending the officer tumbling to the floor.

The shock from the impact onto the floor immediately woke her, and Mihoshi yelped in surprise.

"Huh, what's going on?! Wait… why are we at Headquarters, Kiyone?" She asked her partner.

"Get up, you bubblehead," Kiyone said casually, wearing a faint smile on her face. "And strap yourself in while you're at it."

"Huh? What for?"

The blue exhaust from Yagami's auxiliary engines soon dissipated. Two smaller ships- evidently towing ships- maneuvered to the sides of Yagami and shot out large beams that immediately forced the ship to a complete halt in space. The cockpit shook with the sudden stop, and Mihoshi, reluctant to strap herself to her seat like Kiyone, was thrown from her seat violently and landed back onto the floor. She winced in pain as she slowly stood back up and sat in her seat.

"For that," Kiyone replied, trying harder to contain her enjoyment.

Mihoshi slowly rose from the floor and sat back in her seat she noticed the two small ships that were towing the Yagami into headquarters. "Say, why are we waiting for towing ships, anyway? We used to land the Yagami manually, didn't we?"

"We did, at least until that little incident we had last time," Kiyone replied.

"Last time? What are you talking about?" Mihoshi asked.

"You don't remember how we rammed a towing ship and crashed into the far wall of Hangar 7 because you accidentally set the Yagami's auxiliary engines to full power?" Kiyone asked her, annoyed again. "We were put on desk work for a whole month because of that!"

Yagami chimed in. "It's also the reason I was removed from the retired frigate Yukinojo and reinstalled onto the Yagami. I have no complaints about the arrangement, as I was about to be used in target practice right before that incident!"

"Oh… that? I already told you that it's not my fault the color-coding is wrong!" Mihoshi protested. "If blue means 'go' and red means 'stop', then why is the 'Full Stop' button blue and the 'Full Speed' button red?"

Yagami interjected. "The GP's naval color coding does not correlate with Terra's primitive locomotive regulations and…"

"Because WE'RE NOT ON EARTH, MIHOSHI!" Kiyone interrupted, too frustrated to let Yagami give the standard response. She let out a sigh of defeat, realizing that it would be pointless to try and make her partner remember anything from the past week, let alone year. "Whatever, it doesn't matter now. Let's just meet the Superintendent."

A set of wide doors larger than the Yagami opened up and the crimson ship was slowly dragged near the second set of doors that remained closed. The first set of doors then closed shut, and after a moment of re-pressurization, the second set of doors opened into a large hangar bay. The Yagami was carefully dragged inside before landing on the floor of the hangar bay. A hole on the bottom of the ship opened, and a blue hue of energy came through. Stepping into the opening. Kiyone and Mihoshi slowly descended to the floor of the hangar. The blue energy went away as soon as the two officers stepped away from the ship.

As they landed and took a second to look around, they notice they were surrounded by other Galaxy Police vessels nestled tightly in the hangar, many of them being surrounded by massive metal structures with sparks flying off periodically- the sign of repairs and maintenance checks. In the distance, an elevator on the far side of the hangar's wall descended from above down to the floor, and a single woman walked out, quickly walking up to Kiyone and Mihoshi. When she came closer, the woman's amber eyes and crimson, short-cut red hair, and easy, entrancing smile we're unmistakable. "Mitsuki? Is that you?"

"Of course it is," Mitsuki answered. "What, did you have to think to remember who I was?"

"Maybe... for just a second," Kiyone said innocently. "It's been over a year since I've even looked at you."

"I'm hurt, Kiyo, but you'll have to make up for it later. The superintendent asked me to come over and fetch you two as soon as you got here."

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" Kiyone replied. "Thanks for the welcome. It's good to be back here."

Mitsuki nodded. "I bet it is. Must be a nice change of scenery from that backwater of a system that you got assigned with…" She glanced over to Mihoshi for a second. "I'll give my condolences for that. You know, I suggest you start praying to Tsunami more often. I think you're just a few strokes of luck away from a brand-new career in the GP, don't you?"

"Sure. It must be divine intervention that I'm here," Kiyone said, playing along with the joke. "But we better not test the Superintendent's patience."

The three walked back to the elevator that Mitsuki came from. Once inside, Mitsuki quickly operated the control console and soon the trio was lifted upwards out of the hangar completely. From their clear glass comprising the elevator, Mihoshi and Kiyone looked on as they passed level after level of people bumping into each other and haphazardly carrying their equipment as they strode through the halls of Headquarters. Kiyone saw it as just one step above pandemonium.

"Headquarters appears to be busier than ever these days," she remarked. "Did something happen while we were away?"

"Yeah, there's a new war between Seniwa and Renoir in Sector Six and it's caused a surge of piracy and smuggling. We've been working 'round the clock to try and stop it, but as long as those wrinkly cranks keep squabbling over a bunch of rocks, we're not going to make much headway."

"War? Why is my homeworld fighting a war?" Mihoshi spoke up.

"If I remember right, they're feuding over a border system, and I suspect just for the fun of it, too," Mitsuki answered before she looked at the blonde woman in confusion. "I'm confused actually, how do you, of all people, not know about this? I mean, you're a Kuramitsu; your family rules Seniwa!"

"Sure, but I was never told by anyone from there about it. Come to think of it, they never talk to me about anything!" Mihoshi said.

"Hold on… do you mean to tell me that your own family doesn't contact you, like at all? Not even just a quick 'hello', or 'how are you doing'?" Mitsuki pressed.

"Not even once. I mean… I don't even know who rules Seniwa!"

"Really?" Mitsuki said, sounding unconvinced by Mihoshi's answer. "Now why would that be? Oh, don't answer! Let me guess: you got disowned from the Kuramitsu after joining the GP, didn't you?"

Mihoshi scratched at the back of her hair, completely lost for an answer. "Um… I don't think I was." She said with uncertainty. "Or maybe I was and nobody told me? Wait... why is Seniwa at war with-"

"Finally," Kiyone interrupted as the elevator came to a smooth stop.

They walked out of the elevator. Mitsuki guided Mihoshi and Kiyone through the crowded maze of doors and hallways. After what seemed like an eternity, they reached a long hallway with just a single set of double doors at the end. Mitsuki approached the small terminal at the side of the door and pushed a button on the touch-console.

"Come in." A voice from inside commanded, and the door quickly opened. Inside the dimly-lit room, a woman drank tea in a large armchair as she looked at the stars from the exceedingly large window opposite the doors.

Mitsuki announced their presence as the three officers walked inside and stopped in front of the desk in front of the woman. "Superintendent Fujikawa. I brought Mihoshi and Kiyone here, just like you asked."

The woman slowly turned around in her chair and rested his elbows on the desk in front of her. She had long emerald hair tied in two buns and down her back in a ponytail, and her uniform was white and adorned with medals on the left breast. Her golden eyes glared intently at Mitsuki and Kiyone as saluted the Superintendent as they saluted her; Mihoshi saluted soon after being elbowed by Kiyone.

"At ease." She said, clearing her throat and taking a sip of her tea. "I've been eager to speak with you in person."

"It is likewise an honor to speak with you in person, Superintendent," Kiyone replied.

Fujikawa waved her hand dismissively. "Formalities are for the grunts. If we're going to know each other, I'll give you three special permission to call me 'Airi'. And I do mean it's special; I don't even let the General Secretariat or Vice Superintendent call me by my first name."

"Of course, Super… Miss Airi." Kiyone corrected herself. "Now what sort of crisis on Jurai did you want to talk to us about?"

Airi took another sip of her tea before she answered. "Well, maybe 'crisis' was an exaggeration; it's just that Jurai's entire National Assembly has been taken hostage by a group of militants."

"What?!" Kiyone and Mihoshi yelled out simultaneously.

"That's just about the reaction I expected," Airi said with a small smile. "The leader of this group, Kagato, has been kind enough to announce his presence to the entire galaxy. Watch his message for yourself, and you'll see he's quite a charismatic fellow." The lights in the room darkened, and the space seen through the exceedingly large window was replaced by a video recording. On display was a man with silver hair and dressed in exotic clothing who called himself Kagato and who fervently demanded that the emperor come and face him personally. Kiyone and Mihoshi were shocked slightly when the camera moved down and showed the corpse of a politician and worried when Kagato threatened to blow up the entire National Assembly if his demands are not met.

"What'd I tell you? Very charismatic." Airi commented as the video when dark and the lights in the room brightened again. "The trouble is that he's serious, too. If he's already killed one man then he'll probably make good on his promise to kill the Prime Minister and everybody else if nobody stops him. So we're going to stop him, and that's why you three are here."

"Us three?" Mitsuki repeated.

"Yes, Mitsuki. It has been decided that you will accompany Kiyone and Mihoshi for this operation."

Mitsuki was flabbergasted. "Wha... since… since when was that decided?"

Airi made a long pause as she took another sip of her tea. "Since just now. You don't think I needed an errand girl to escort two Detectives First-Class to my office, did you? I've looked into your records as well, you know, and your performance is impressive… even if Major Kusanagi has less-than-stellar things to add personally regarding your conduct."

"Forgive my tone, Airi, but Major Kusanagi is a complete tool! He's just jealous and feels like I don't deserve to be promoted to a rank higher than his own. He'll smudge the reports as much as he can just to keep me a Detective-Sergeant!"

"Well, that's something I ask him about if you're serious, but for now, you three will report to Lieutenant Ryoji Ishizuka in Jurai City, and believe me, you'll know him when you see him. I have given him full control of this operation, so you'll be taking orders from him when you arrive."

"We understand, Superint... Miss Airi," Kiyone corrected herself again. "Is there anything else we should know before taking our leave?"

"Sure." She answered. "I don't want to say this, but I am ordering you three to NOT fail in this mission. Not only are the lives of innocent people at stake, but I have personally promised the Emperor of Jurai that we would be successful. I would hate to disappoint him."

Mihoshi spoke up suddenly. "W-wait, don't tell me you're going to FIRE us if we fail! We just arrived from Earth… sorry, I meant 'Gaia'... or was it 'Terra'?" She interrupted herself, putting a hand to her chin in confusion. She shook her head and continued with her original thought. "Well, it just doesn't seem to be very fair..."

Immediately, Mihoshi's mouth was closed shut tightly by Kiyone, who wasn't about to allow her partner to defy the Superintendent of Galaxy Police herself. "Oh, don't mind Mihoshi." She said casually. "She's just trying to give herself a few laughs before the mission; it helps ease her stress. Right Mihoshi?"

"But, but Kiyone!" Mihoshi forced out of her mouth. "This isn't protocol, it's not r..."

"Your partner is more perceptive than you think," Airi said to Kiyone, who finally let go of Mihoshi. "Under normal circumstances, I would never do something like this; I find it very unprofessional of me to blackmail officers just to do their job. However, this case is unique. Never before have the Galaxy Police been given such a vital task as rescuing an entire governmental body from terrorists. And while the Emperor didn't threaten this when I spoke with him, I guess that Jurai will cut its funding of the Galaxy Police if we make a mess down there; it wouldn't be the first time, you know.."

She now stood up from his chair and walked around his desk to face the three officers on level ground. Her voice now seemed divine in its delivery, as a goddess commands his disciples to do her bidding. "I have personally selected you three to participate in this operation because you have all proven time and again to be of an exceptional breed of Galaxy Police Officer that can be counted on to get results. More importantly, I selected you three because I trust that you will not fail." She cleared her throat before continuing. "Granted, if you fail anyway, I'll hold no qualms about pulling enough strings to put you three on trial for negligence and get dishonorably discharged from the Galaxy Police. I suggest that you make sure things don't come to that."

"We understand, Miss Airi. I thank you for putting your trust in us." Kiyone said.

A smirk grew out of Airi's face before she walked back around the desk and sat in her chair again. "That settles things. You have your orders: make the GP look good and rescue the National Assembly, then come back to tell me all about it. Dismissed."

* * *

A man lay still on the ground right outside the massive doors of Jurai's National Assembly. Slowly, his eyes opened themselves and saw the small stars in the night sky and he breathed in the cool midnight air. Then he smelt a strange, disturbing, and familiar scent. Right away he realized it was blood, his blood.

"Oh… what am I doing here?" He asked himself. The man put his hands to the ground and pushed up, trying to get up onto his feet. An intense and sudden bout of pain made him fall over on his back and he groaned quietly in pain. He looked down at himself and saw an ominous handle in his lower abdomen, with blood very slowly trickling out from it and staining his clothing.

Then he remembered the story. He was stabbed right here not too long ago when a mysterious man wearing the uniform of Jurai's Republican Guard walked up to him. At the moment right after being stabbed, a plan quickly formed in his head to improve his chances of surviving by laying still and making the wound seem fatal, which it almost was.

He remembered that being just before dusk, but now he saw that the rays of the star Taiyo had long ago fallen below the horizon. His original plan was to get up shortly afterward and alert the authorities, but his body evidently couldn't take the pain and he passed out.

"Ah, you idiot! You were supposed to play dead for a few minutes, not hours!" He chastised himself. "I must be getting rusty."

The man again ran the events through his head, and he remembered another part of the story, that there was also the young guard who stood on the opposite side of the set of doors when he was stabbed. Sure enough, he turned his head to the left and he saw the corpse of a man wearing the same clothing as he did. He grunted fiercely and he made a greater effort to stand up in spite of the pain, this time succeeding. He wobbled over to the corpse, nearly falling over again before looking down upon the man.

He saw his young, smooth face and open eyes that were traumatized by the stabbing wound that tore through his chest. He looked near the body and saw a sword that was caked in blood, evidently the murder weapon. Then he looked over at the young man's sword, still held in his cold, dead hands.

He knelt next to the fallen man and carefully moved his hand over the man's eyelids, closing them. Then he closed his own eyes and moved into a praying stance; his head bent down and his hands pressed flat against each other. He said, "You poor soul… far, far too young. But don't worry, I'll make things right and bring your killer to justice, it's the least I can do."

Moving out of his praying stance, he took the sword from the fallen man's hand and placed it into his empty sword sheath attached to his uniform; he had already noticed that he lost his sword in the darkness. In the distance past the winding marble pathway, he could hear the low roar of sirens and the lights of the authorities.

As he put two and two together, he realized that there was a hostage situation just inside the National Assembly. He needed to act, but 'how' was the question. He was too injured and ill-armed to take on whatever assailants were inside; but, the authorities could use whatever information they could get. Fortunately, he knew that he knew one bit of information that would certainly be useful.

"Detective Yoritomo, it looks like you have a new case on your hands." He said to himself as he walked down the long set of stairs down into the path. But then he heard a loud creaking noise of the heavy doors behind him, and he darted down the steps- that is, as fast as he could move without causing himself pain from the blade still in his body- and he made his way into the foliage and out of sight from the door. He heard two men talking from there.

"Hey, did you hear something out there?"

"No? Is it the police?"

"Eh, I don't think it was; it might have been an animal or something... wait, wasn't there two bodies out here, not one? Damn, I'd check but I'd rather not get shot by a sniper, you know?"

"Right. Just keep watch from the nearest window and stay out of sight."

When the voices died down and he heard the heavy doors shut again, he got up and continued to walk into the foliage, hoping that he would reach the nearest street without the risk of getting spotted on the path.

* * *

As Kiyone, Mihoshi, and Mitsuki were walking back through the halls of Level Eight on their way back to the Yagami, a man quickly walked up to them. He was pushing a large cart with boxes towards them. "Excuse me, are you three the officers headed to Jurai?" He asked plainly. "There's something I need to give you."

The man knelt and opened one of the boxes on the ground. He removed the top and he pulled out black and grey uniform and what appeared to be a helmet. Mihoshi moved forward and took both from the man's hands, nearly dropping the helmet.

"What are these?" She asked. "Presents? Oh, that's sweet of you. I mean, we don't even know your name yet!"

"What?" The officer asked in embarrassment. "N-no, the officer you're scheduled to meet with on Jurai contacted Logistics just now. He requested that you three come outfitted with these Type 89 Special Forces Combat Suits. He said you'll need them for your operation." He placed the other two boxes on the ground and hurried away.

"Oh, thank you," Kiyone called out. She snatched the uniform and helmet from Mihoshi and analyzed it herself. "Type 89? I assume these are new."

"It's so new I've never even seen them," Mitsuki said. "I overheard some of the rumors, though, that R&D was supposedly making a brand new combat suit to replace the old Type 85s, and this time they were adding a brand new Helmet that also functions as a HUD. You know, scanners, comms, the works. This must be it."

"I'll try it on for myself as soon as we're on the Yagami," Kiyone said.

The trio continued through level seven and back down the elevator where the Yagami was parked in the hangar. Once inside, Kiyone took the helm of the vessel and steered it out headquarters and back into open space. After inputting the coordinates for Jurai into the navigation computer and getting the ship began its journey, Kiyone made her way into Yagami's onboard equipment room to change into her brand-new combat suit.

It was not the most comfortable place to take one's clothes off, but Kiyone was so used to the cold metal floor and bright lights that she could hardly complain. She carefully unbuttoned her standard GP Uniform and took it off. When the outer vest and shirts are removed, all GP uniforms are single-piece, one-size-fits-all suits, and the combat suit she was now holding in front of her was no exception. It slid on just like her regular outfit, but once she pressed the button on the back of the right sleeve and the suit quickly shrunk to fit her, it was unlike anything she wore before. This one felt firmer and sturdy, but just as flexible and elastic as her regular uniform, perhaps even more elastic. The outfit also came with a utility belt and pockets for holding tools such as her control cube.

And then there was the helmet, laying on a bench to the side. She was still surprised by how lightweight it was when she picked it up and examined it. She found a short cord that was just long enough to connect to the combat suit's modular input on the back of the neck. Then her fingers ran up and down the helmet until they stumbled upon the activation switch near the left ear. She put the helmet on, and the clear pane of glass in front of her eyes immediately activated and closed in on her face, like a pair of glasses. She saw the corners of her vision being covered by dark green letters and symbols.

Out of curiosity's sake, she took her handgun from its holster and pointed it at the door. Kiyone saw that her HUD had adjusted to accommodate the use of the weapon, with a brand-new cursor in the middle of her view and a small window at the bottom left of her view that detailed the weapon's energy status.

Then the door opened and Mihoshi curiously stepped inside the room. Kiyone quickly holstered her weapon, and she saw that her HUD had zeroed-in on and quickly identified the officer as "Kuramitsu, Mihoshi, DFC."

"Woah! You look strange in that outfit, Kiyone!" Mihoshi remarked, walked towards and around Kiyone in fascination.

Kiyone felt for the switch and took the helmet off. "I imagine, it looks nothing like our regular uniforms. You'd think they would've at least given us an instruction manual or something on how to use it, but I guess this operation will be our real test with it."

"But how does it feel?" Mihoshi asked. "Is it like our regular uniforms?"

"No. It feels… better. This doesn't feel like a regular uniform, but it's more like I'm wearing a weapon. The HUD that comes with it will take some getting used to, though. Alright, you and Mitsuki get outfitted too." Kiyone made her way past Mihoshi and toward the cockpit.

A short while later the Yagami had reached Jurai. Kiyone looked out at Jurai City- a city which wasn't too hard to spot from orbit. Yagami emerged from its spot in the ceiling.

"Lieutenant Ryoji Ishizuka is currently located in the Imperial District near the center of Jurai City. I'll guide us in." It said.

The Yagami touched down carefully on the pavement. Kiyone and her two fellow officers, now dressed in combat suits themselves, descended from the Yagami and landed on the ground, and for a moment they all took in the air and looked around at the nearby building. While they adhered to a classical style that predates the massive skyscrapers in the rest of the city, they were still marvels in their own right.

"Wow, Jurai City is larger than I could've ever imagined!" Mihoshi said out loud. "It's certainly bigger than Okayama, don't you think?"

"Okayama?" Mitsuki asked.

"Ah...a Terran city we chose as our base of operations," Kiyone answered before turning to Mihoshi. "Remember, we didn't come here to do window shopping. We're here to do our job. Remember what the Superinten… what Miss Airi said," She corrected herself again, "if we mess up the three of us are done for!"

"Of course, it's not like I'd forgotten. Let's go find that lieutenant person we're meeting with." Mihoshi replied.

They walked down the street in the final stretch of their journey. As they neared a collection of people, ordinary citizens clambering to get a closer look at the situation and Jurai City Police officers- identified by their plain white and green fatigues and gold badges- looked in awe and surprise at the three GP Officers as they casually walked by clad in their dark military-style attire.

Right in front of the gate and front pathway which leads to the front doors of the National Assembly was a small shuttlecraft parked in the middle of the street. There was a large retractable door that was open, and just inside a man was sitting in place and looking at a projected screen right in front of him.

The three women in his peripheral vision caught his attention, and he stood up facing them. The man was wearing a grey trench coat that covered most of his thin body, but what little skin that was exposed was remarkably pale, even compared to Kiyone's white skin. His eyes and brows were narrow and dull; his nose was small and pointed, and his lips were thin; his dirty blonde hair was short and poorly combed; overall, he looked like he was not a regular field officer.

"Oh, I assume you looking for me? Welcome to Jurai City. I'm Ryoji Ishizuka, Lieutenant Ryoji Ishizuka." He said, emphasizing his rank. "It's about time you showed up."

They all gathered around the lieutenant, and Kiyone was the first to speak. "Greetings, lieutenant. I'm Detective First-Class Kiyone Maki…"

"Makibi, I know." He interrupted. "While I was waiting, I looked into files for all three of you, so I know everything I need to know for now. Needless to say, I hope the Superintendent is right about trusting you three because I requested at least eight operatives for this operation."

Mihoshi keenly noticed how they were all standing at least half a head taller than him. "Wow, for a lieutenant, you're a lot shorter than I imagined!" Mihoshi said. Immediately she felt pain in her ear as it pulled hard by Kiyone. "Ow, ow ow! Hey, what'd I say?!"

"What? It's not like she's wrong or anything!" Mitsuki said to Kiyone, chuckling.

The lieutenant put a hand to his mouth and cleared his throat. "Yeah, I get that a lot. But me being just 159 centimeters tall doesn't make me any worse at my job, which is why the Superintendent chose me to lead this operation. Now if you're all done with the mundane observations, Detective Kuramitsu, we have a National Assembly to rescue."

"Of course, lieutenant. Just tell us the plan you had in mind," Kiyone answered, wanting to speed things along.

"Alright. Well, since we didn't even know about this incident until Kagato conveniently told us he and his buddies were here, we have no clue how many are inside the building; it could be as low as ten or as high as fifty for all we know. Therefore, our objective our Operation- Codename: "Hangyaku"- is strict elimination."

"Elimination?" Mitsuki repeated. "So, we're not busting through the front door?"

"Unless I didn't care about getting fired for your incompetence, then no. I have a better idea," He said. Then he reached into his trench coat and whipped out his pink control cube and began twisting and turning it until a few small metallic objects fell right into his hands. "These are attachable grappling hooks that you're going to use to scale the National Assembly building from the southwest corner up to the third-floor windows and break your way inside. From there, you'll need to stealthily enter the building's central chamber, apprehend Kagato, and disarm the explosive device he showed off in his video recording. Do that and you'll give the Jurai City Police the all-clear to make a breach from the front and clear out the rest of the building."

"That sounds too convenient," Kiyone protested. "What if they anticipate us coming from above? We'll be putting ourselves at risk from the start."

Ishizuka sighed. "Sorry, but nothing else will do. Believe me, I've spent the past hour running the calculations through with every other possible point of entry and most have such a low chance of succeeding they're not even worth mentioning. But I've tested an infiltration from those third story windows again and again with multiple variables at play and I'm getting a mean success rate of sixty-five percent. Not ideal, obviously, but I'll take what I can get. There's no other choice but to-"

"You don't understand how important this is!" A voice rang out, breaking Ishizuka's concentration.

The group looked over and spotted a floating gurney nearby. Laying on the medical bed was a man dressed in blue and gold clothing whose face was full of fury towards the medic who was pushing the gurney.

"What do you mean we have to go now? I told you already the bleeding is under control! I just need to speak to the head honcho here." He begged the medic. His eyes then turned towards Ishizuka and others near the shuttle. "Wait, the GP is here? Medic, push me over to those GP officers!"

"You're telling me you want that thing in your body longer!?" The medic asked, referring to the blade. "I'm sorry, but what you need to worry about is getting immediate treatment at a hospital, not GP Officers!"

"This is an emergency, don't you understand?!" The man yelled at the medic." As a member of Jurai's Republican Guard, I order you to move me over to those GP Officers!"

The medic sighed. "Suit yourself, but don't act surprised when the wound gets infected. Five minutes."

"Greetings, officers. Junichiro Yoritomo of Jurai's Republican Guard, at your service. How's your first time in our fair Jurai City going?"

"Wait, Republican Guard? We thought they all got killed when the building was taken over," Ishizuka said to the man.

"I thought so, too, but I woke up with this blade in me a little while ago and I managed to wobble my way over here without passing out again. It's not so bad, really; if the blade went a little deeper it might've pierced my kidney or something. Lady Tsunami must have a thing for me, eh?" Yoritomo said jokingly.

Mitsuki was not impressed with the man's boasting. "Don't press your luck, old man. You should be in a hospital right now, not talking to us. Besides, we're very busy trying to save the National Assembly if you haven't noticed; as in, we're doing the job YOU were supposed to do!"

"You try getting stabbed in the gut all of a sudden, why don't you? It's hard to keep thugs out when you can't even stand up!" He replied harshly to the red-haired woman. "Just listen to me, you need a way into the National Assembly, right? I'm guessing you were planning on using the roof to get in; not bad, but I happen to know another way that will work guaranteed."

Ishizuka opened his eyes wide from that last point. "What are you talking about?" He asked.

"There's a passage underneath the building. It's old, probably built alongside the National Assembly all those years ago. Nobody ever told us about it, either; I only found out after poking around the place while on duty. Anyway, the passage leads from out of the National Assembly into Jurai City's old sewer systems. If you want, you guys could enter the old sewers and use the passageway yourselves to get inside; Kagato and his boys would be none the wiser."

"Well, that changes things. If you're serious about it, then where can we find this passageway?"

Yoritomo pointed to another tall building in the vicinity. "Look over to the Ministry of Energy, the one right down the street. In front of the building is an old manhole which is one of the entryways into the sewers. Once you're inside, head north until you reach a fork that divides the path into three directions; west, north, and east. Go east until you reach a dead-end, and near there is a false wall that's the end of the passageway. Now, this passageway is made of bricks, obviously, and of the bricks on the side is a button that opens the wall up when pressed. I marked it with a little scratch myself, so you'll know which one it is. Go in through that narrow passage, and you'll open a door that leads into a small basement-level room inside the building. What happens after that is up to you."

"North, East, a brick… I understand. Thank you, sir," Kiyone replied. "You may have just saved countless lives with what we know now."

"No… no," He said dismissively. "I've done nothing. You are the ones who'll be using my knowledge. Hopefully, you guys can sort out this mess. Good luck. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to take care of this blade in my gut." He waved his hand over to the idle medic, who took the gesture as to continue with their journey to the nearest hospital.

"You've got to be kidding me! I didn't spend years training at the GP Academy just to crawl around in some dank sewer! Forget that half-dead old man, I'd rather just go in from the ceiling!" Mitsuki said loudly. "I mean, what if he's wrong and we get lost down there?"

Kiyone crossed her arms as she looked at Mitsuki in contempt. "If you want to risk getting shot at, that's your business, Mitsuki. However, Mihoshi and I are looking to get this done right, even if it means crawling through a sewer."

"Yeah!" Mihoshi agreed. She walked over and confidently put her shoulder around Mitsuki. "Anything is worth keeping the jobs we earned only after years of hard, grueling training, don't you think? Besides, what's the problem with the sewer? You can take a shower the second we get back to Headquarters, so it's not so bad! Let's do it!"

Mitsuki sighed and admitted defeat as she grabbed Mihoshi's arm and freed herself. "Damn it, fine! I suppose it won't kill me. Alright, I'll do it."

"Good, if we're all ready to begin," Ishizuka took out his control cube again and twisted it. This time, a headpiece device suddenly appeared onto the front of his face; it looked similar to that of the Officers' HUD helmet but smaller and more like a headpiece than military equipment. The lieutenant officer spoke up, "Follow me, we're starting this operation." He began walking down the street with the three in tow behind him. Soon enough they found themselves standing in front of the Ministry of Energy, and just as Kuro claimed, there was a single circular manhole in the middle of the street. Walking over to it, Mitsuki and Kiyone walked to opposite ends and grabbed the openings in the manhole and pulled up, raising the metal cover out and revealing a ladder that leads down into the darkness below.

"It's… it's so dark down there." Mihoshi commented.

"Your HUDs are equipped with built-in night vision that activates in dark environments, so you won't get lost down there," Ishizuka informed Mihoshi before turning to the other two officers. "Also, I'll be able to hear and keep track of you three once you're inside; if you need any help just call my name and I'll do what I can. Just don't ask me to come in there with my gun, alright? My aim isn't exactly up to par with field officers like you two… three, I mean." He said, looking innocently at Mihoshi.

Mihoshi rushed forward and fiercely shook Ishizuka's hand, taking him by surprise. "Don't worry, Ish… Ishi…" She stammered, struggling to remember the Lieutenant's name.

"Ishizuka." He finished. "Or Ryoji if you can't…"

"Don't worry, Ishizuka! We'll be extra careful once we're inside! You can count on us!" Mihoshi said joyfully, finally letting go of Ishizuka's hand.

"You're pretty enthusiastic about risking your life, but sure, I might as well pray that this doesn't end my career with the GP. As of right now, Operation: Hangyaku in effect. Good luck, and… ah, you probably heard that from the Superintendent already. Just get in there."

The three officers nodded, and Kiyone took the initiative and lowered herself into the manhole first, finding her grip on the ladder and quickly being followed by Mihoshi and Mitsuki. Before they even made it to the bottom of the ladder, their HUDs had activated their night vision mode, and their view was bathed in dark green and black.

Once inside, they looked around and found their bearings in the new environment. Despite Mitsuki's fears, the old sewer was dry and not offensive to the nose. They were in a single corridor that ran North and South. Kiyone followed the instructions given by Yoritomo and lead the trio north for a little while until they reached the fork in the road, just like the man had claimed there was.

"East," Kiyone said to herself.

They continued walking in silence for more minutes until they found themselves at a wall; it was a dead end. Kiyone scanned around the walls until she came across a door-wide opening in the wall.

"Wait, it's already open? Didn't he say we needed to touch a stone or something?" Mitsuki asked, confused.

"He did. Maybe he thought he closed this opening shut when he didn't. It doesn't matter now, let's just go in." Kiyone said.

She slowly turned the hand and the door slowly creaked open. Passing through the three found themselves inside a small room, perhaps a storage unit for sanitation equipment. There was a single staircase that led up. Kiyone took out her blaster from her holster and grabbed it with both hands.

"Get ready, you two." She ordered, and her two comrades took out their pistols. Kiyone soon made her way up the stairs and turned to her left. There was another door.

"Ishizuka," Kiyone said. "We've made it through without any problems. Does this door I'm looking at lead into the main building?"

"Affirmative," Ishizuka answered. "I'm looking at a map of the building's schematics, you'll be stepping into the hallway of a large rotunda, a circular hallway. You should find a single doorway that leads into the chambers where Kagato and the hostages are. Also, don't walk down any of the long hallways that leading out from the rotunda, you'll just end up at the front of the building. That's probably where most of the crooks are."

"Understood," Kiyone answered before turning to Mitsuki and Mihoshi. "Alright, we're going to split up and secure this hallway before closing in on Kagato. Mitsuki, you're going to…"

"Who are you giving me orders, Detective First-Class?" Mitsuki interrupted with a hint of annoyance. Kiyone was not having it, however.

"I am Detective First-Class Kiyone Makibi, and we don't have the time to argue about this. File a complaint to the lieutenant if you care that much." Kiyone answered sternly.

"N-no, please don't." Ishizuka chimed in over the comms. "I'm going to get swamped with paperwork as it is. Detective-Sergeant, I'm ordering you to follow Makibi's orders."

"Thanks, lieutenant. Now," Kiyone continued. "Mihoshi, you're going to stay right here and guard this hallway and doorway. Once I disable and apprehend Kagato, we're going to move him through here and get him out of harm's way. This is important, so I'm counting on you."

"All right! I won't let you down, Kiyone!" Mihoshi said happily.

Kiyone turned to Mitsuki. "And you're covering the eastern hallway, facing the front of the building. Now, I haven't forgotten what you were like in the academy, so try and keep a level head and just keep watch, got it?"

"All right, all right. I wasn't promoted to Detective-Sergeant by being an idiot, you know." Mitsuki replied, slightly annoyed.

With their objectives in order. Kiyone slowly opened the door and peeked out both ways. No hostiles. She turned back and nodded to her partners before entering the hallway. She moved cautiously, taking care to keep her eyes peeled for both hostiles and the nearest entrance into the speaking chambers. She couldn't find the first, but she eventually found the second. The right wall sank inwards and a set of double doors was isolated into its miniature hallway. Kiyone took a second look around before sitting down inside the miniature hallway, sighing relief.

"Getting restless, Kiyo? This is the easy part, you know." Mitsuki commented.

"I didn't ask for your opinion." Kiyone shot back, getting back up and walking towards the doors. "Do you see anyone coming from your position?"

"Nope," Mitsuki answered. "They must all be holed up near the front of the building."

Mihoshi spoke up," Same over here, I don't see anyone… and I can check my thermal optics if you don't believe me, too!"

"I believe you, Mihoshi, just stay where you are. Alright, I'm going to see if our target is in there." Kiyone immediately noticed a small metal grating on one of the doors-likely for ceremonial purposes- with holes that allowed her to see into the chamber. She tried looking through, but it was simply too dark for her to make out anything inside.

Undeterred, she knelt and pulled out her control cube from one of the suit's pockets. After a few twists and putting the cube away, she was holding a small blocky object in her left hand. Kiyone noted the two control sticks and four buttons laid out on the side of the block she was looking at, as well as the trio of cords coming out of one side. She grabbed hold of them, trying to insert them into the inputs on the left arm, but they weren't there. Remembering how she looked over the top of her combat helmet on the Yagami, Kiyone removed it and found a small input that fit with the cord.

"You know, lieutenant, you should tell those R&D scientists to make a version of this suit without all the wires. It feels like I'm hooked up on life support right now." She commented as she put her helmet back on.

"The Type 89 suit is supposed to be completely wireless, but it also wasn't supposed to be approved for manufacturing for another three months. I needed a suit, R&D said they wouldn't mind some field data, so I got prototype models for you three. Please bear with it, Officer Makibi." He said.

Kiyone sighed and went back to what she was doing. A small door in the blocky object opened and out came a tiny insectoid-like machine- the GP's standard aerial infiltration camera. Kiyone took a firm hold of the block and started controlling the tiny machine; the tiny rotary blades on either side of the robot began their revolutions. The glass on Kiyone's HUD glass went black before switching to the view of the machine's camera. With everything up and running, she began flying it. The robot carefully flew through the metal grating and entered the chamber itself. Soon, she managed to locate two people of interest.

"Alright, I see Kagato inside the chamber. I can only see another man standing next to him-probably the prime minister." Kiyone said, turning the drone towards the rest of the chamber. "The rest of the National Assembly are here, as expected… except for that one deputy who got killed."

"That's fine and good, but are you sure you can apprehend him alone?" Mitsuki asked. "I mean, he's must seem very confident in himself if he didn't want anyone guarding him."

"I'll fire a tranquilizing dart at him; a good hit to the neck and he'll be asleep before he hits the ground," Kiyone said confidently but then she took a second look at the drone's view and she noticed something. She remembered during Kagato's message that there was a rectangular object that was supposed to be a bomb, but now she found that object again and it didn't seem that way now. She could see three large holes on the top of the object. It seemed that this bomb was a container, a container for...

"Wait, what about that object we saw in the recording? I can see it now, but I don't think it's a bomb. No… it looks like a container that can fit exactly three smaller objects inside."

"Yes, I see that, but what are you thinking?" Ishizuka asked. "You suppose those objects are bombs themselves?"

"I'm not sure," Kiyone answered, disconnecting from the aerial drone and discarding the controller. "Lieutenant, can you look over the schematics of this building again? Exactly how many main supports keep this rotunda structure up?"

"Good question. Alright, I'm looking at it right now. It seems like… three, there are exactly three main supports distributed in a triangle along the rotunda. If they blow, it won't be enough to take down the entire building, but it will collapse the middle-section that houses the chambers and everyone inside."

"Damn!" Kiyone cursed. "It looks like my hunch was right. What we saw earlier was a ruse. Kagato probably wants to draw us in him and then he'll blow it!"

"Wow, this guy loves his little games," Mitsuki remarked. "Must've had a pretty bad childhood if he thinks playtime involves bombing a… alright, that would've been one of my worst jokes this year; good thing I caught myself!"

"Focus, Mitsuki," Kiyone commanded. "We'll need to find and disarm those explosives before we can apprehend Kagato. Let me think… alright, we can probably find and disarm them before anyone notices. Mihoshi, Mitsuki, you two are going to search for them for me. I'll keep an eye on Kagato."

"Sure, that beats sitting here and looking at an empty hall. Where to?" Mitsuki asked.

Ishizuka answered. "Well, Officer Tsukushi, from your current position, the nearest structural support should be… twenty meters northwest. Now, this support should come in the form of a large angular pillar, so it won't be too hard to spot. And Kuramitsu..."

"Yes?" Mihoshi answered. "The closest one to you is forty meters southeast."

"Got it," Mitsuki said. She took one last glance over at the hallway, seeing that there still wasn't any activity. "Going now."

The floors of the National Assembly were lined with thick, lavish carpets that greatly deafened any footsteps. Added to the noise-deafening soles on the bottom of their standard-issue GP boots there was virtually no chance that anybody would be able to hear either Mitsuki or Mihoshi approach as long as they were careful.

Mitsuki was the first to find her target. There was indeed a large pillar coming out of the wall and occupied a large part of the hall as it extended up into the high ceiling. She got close to the pillar and saw that Kiyone's fears were confirmed. She was looking right at a large, star-shaped object that was attached by wire to a smaller device. "Looks like I found something. Judging from the remote detonator wired to it, it's a bomb, and it's wired to explode at any moment."

"At least we know that my worries were warranted. Can you defuse it?" Kiyone asked.

"We're going to find out," Mitsuki answered. She rummaged through her control cube and was soon holding a multi-purpose tool that carefully pried off the outer layer of the detonator. "Well, this is odd. Very odd."

"How so?" Kiyone asked

"Well you see, Kiyo, the detonators we're trained to defuse activates when they receive a wireless signal from a linked device. For those, it's easy to sever the link between the detonator the wireless receiver…but this… I can tell this is different."

"How different?"

"Hmm…I guess you could say these things work oppositely. The detonator is receiving a constant wireless signal, but if it's interrupted, then the thing will go off. The source of the signal is probably some sort of device that Kagato is holding down inside that chamber you're looking at. If his hand lets go of that device and it stops sending the signal… well, I'm sure you get it."

"Are you sure that we're dealing with that sort of device? You could just be wrong."

"Yeah, I could, but I've seen a few of these before in some of my fun, little adventures. I have a good feeling that I'm right. What do you think we should do with them?"

"If you're right, then we can't do anything. The JCDP will have to deal with it when we're done here… wait a minute, I have a better idea. Mitsuki, can you store that bomb inside your control cube?"

"Uh… assuming that the time it takes to transport the bomb between dimensions… is less than the time it takes for it to detonate once the signal is cut… I guess it could work."

"Then do it," Kiyone ordered. "Mihoshi, how are things going on your end?"

"Well, I'm almost there, but somebody is standing nearby. Do you think I can ask them to help me with disarming the bomb?"

"What?!" Kiyone and Mitsuki said simultaneously.

"Absolutely not! That's a hostile you're looking at, Mihoshi!" Kiyone spoke angrily into her comms. A moment later she calmed down, realizing that no disaster has happened just yet. "Alright, good job on reporting in before doing anything. Now, do you see anyone else nearby? It's dark, so make sure you check using your thermal-optics too."

"No, I don't see anybody else… I checked on thermal-optic mode too, and there's nobody nearby. What should I do now?"

"Take him down," Kiyone said plainly. "Tranquilizers are fine... you did bring a tranquil-launcher, didn't you?"

Mihoshi rummaged through her control cube's inventory and managed to find every item under the sun… except for the one she needed. "I have a syringe, but no launcher. Uh…was I supposed to have both of them?"

"What do you think?!"

"Eh, don't be so hard on her, Kiyo. She can just chokehold him from behind. Classic CQC. You do remember your training, right Mihoshi?"

"Well, I remember the parts where I kept getting sent to the infirmary for bruises and cuts, and that one time I lost my last baby tooth from getting punched in the jaw… come to think of it, Mitsuki, weren't you the one who punched me?" Mihoshi asked.

"Oh, I think I know what you're talking about!" Mitsuki answered. "It wasn't a punch, though. I distinctly remember giving you a hard kick to the jaw. It was such a good kick, I'm surprised I didn't break your neck in the process! Sorry about that."

"It doesn't matter! Just hurry up and take him out!" Kiyone pressed. "We're running on a schedule here. Every second wasted is another second putting the National Assembly at risk!"

"Um, okay. I think I can do it. I will do it!" Mihoshi answered. She got stood up from her crouch behind the corner, looking at the masked man and noticing that he had turned his body and was looking in another direction.

"Come to think of it, why does that guy have silver hair anyway?" The man asked himself. "Does he dye it? To each his own, I guess."

Mihoshi carefully snuck over to where she was right behind him. Taking a deep breath and exhaling, Mihoshi made her move…!

And then one of Mihoshi's boots tripped up on the carpet while she attempted to jump the man from behind. She lost balance and fell over and on top of the man, causing him to fall hard onto the floor face first. He was not finished, however. As Mihoshi was in the middle of standing back up on the floor the man turned his body around and kicked hard at the side of Mihoshi's legs, causing her to fall over again. He pressed his advantage, pushing his left arm off the floor to support himself while his right hand reached for the knife held at his side in a quick motion. He lunged onto Mihoshi and began to bring down his knife right near Mihoshi's neck, but then Mihoshi used her left hand to connect with the man's wrist and deflect it away. She brought up her right hand for a punch, and her fist struck home square in man's temple, knocking him unconscious and causing his limp body to fall on top of Mihoshi. She mustered her strength and pushed the body off her, allowing her to take several deep breaths before standing up. The Detective reached for the syringe she pulled out and injected the liquid right into the man's neck, putting him to sleep. "I… I did it!"

Mitsuki saw the entire ordeal from her synced HUD. "Well, all things considered, that was a nice sucker to the temple!"

"You're giving her too much credit," Kiyone said. "If there wasn't any carpet here we'd have already been spotted for the racket Mihoshi made." She sighed. "Give me an update, Mitsuki."

"Surprisingly intact. You were right, we can store them. More than one, since I already moved over and removed the second one. There's still the problem of trying to take them back out without causing an explosion, but one step at a time, I guess."

Mihoshi spoke up. "Um, Kiyone? I can't find the third bomb. There is a third one, right? Right?"

"There should be, keep looking!" Kiyone ordered.

"I am!" Mihoshi cried out. "But I can't find it anywhere near where it's supposed to be! Do you have any ideas where…" She stopped as suddenly a blast of energy came veering toward her. Mihoshi barely managed to dodge in time, the bolt of energy tearing through the outer fringes of her hair that couldn't fit in her helmet.

Mitsuki heard the commotion and instinctively leaped to the nearest cover, just as a flurry of energy flew past and hit the wall. "Uh oh. Kiyo, we have a problem." She said as she reached for her gun and started shooting back.

"We've run out of time, Makibi. Apprehend Kagato right now!" Ishizuka ordered.

"What about the last explosive?" Kiyone responded.

He sighed. "We don't have to think about that! Kagato needs to be taken out, that's our objective."

Kiyone nodded and stood up facing the door. She aimed her pistol and shot at the latch holding the double doors together, kicking them inwards and rushing inside the chamber. She immediately spotted Kagato, who was in the middle of struggling with the Prime Minister. He overpowered the politician and dragged him in between Kiyone and himself, blocking a clean shot.

The deputies started up a commotion from the scene and few of them stood up in astonishment. "Ah! Rescue at last! Praise Tsunami, we are saved!" one cried out.

"Stay right where you are! None of you are leaving until I leave!" He yelled towards the deputies before turning back to Kiyone. "And as for you, it's about time you showed up! The truth is I was beginning to worry that the Galaxy Police wouldn't be visiting and that I would be trapped here with nothing but boredom and politicians. Thankfully, once I heard a loud thump on the carpet just now, I knew my patience was rewarded."

Kiyone took a step forward. "I'm only giving this one chance to settle things peacefully, Kagato," Kiyone stated clearly. "Let go of the Prime Minister, deactivate the final explosive, and tell your men to stand down. Now!"

"Aren't you forgetting something? Kagato teased. His arm, previously stuffed inside layers of clothing was now out in the open. His hand was clutching a remote device and pressing down on a button, and there was a star-shaped object strapped to his right breast. "One innocent slip of my finger off this remote is all that it would take for this whole chamber to billow with fire and ash. I daresay you are the one who should stand down!"

Kiyone took another step forward, ignoring his rebuttal. "I'm not taking threats from a terrorist! I'll shoot you dead right here if you won't comply!"

He laughed, annoying Kiyone. "Enough with the empty threats. Do you think you have any power over me? You do not, and even if you did, I am not going to stop what has been set in motion. This note is just the prelude to the main symphony, it would be utterly shameful to stop. Unfortunately, I have run out of time to chatter. I shall take my leave and take the Prime Minister along with me."

Kiyone did not respond. She couldn't, as she did not know what to say or do. She was dumbfounded at her situation. Slowly, she felt her blood begin to boil, her gun tremble fiercely in her hand, and a surge of anger overtake her as she realized the horrible situation she was forced into.

It would be impossible to apprehend Kagato and shooting him wasn't a much better idea. Besides killing herself about a hundred-innocent people from the explosion, she knew it would also cause a major scandal for the Galaxy Police.

On the other hand, letting Kagato escape with the Prime Minister would not only cause a scandal for the Galaxy Police as sell, but it would get herself and her two partners Mihoshi and Mitsuki a court-martialed and expulsion from the Galaxy Police, as promised by Airi. For her, letting Kagato escape guarantees her losing her hard-earned position.

Now, she saw her predicament as a lose-lose situation: she could lose her life right now or lose it within the next two weeks. A terrible, twisted thought which ran through her mind. It was enough for her to make a decision.

She took a deep breath and steadied her trembling hands and aimed for Kagato's head with the assistance of her HUD's assisted targeting feature. She could still hear the ringing of energy weapons from her partners and Kagato's men going off in the distance, but they seemed like an afterthought now. Kagato said nothing, instead, he raised his eyebrows and smiled with one half of his mouth, curious if she was going to shoot him. Kiyone exhaled and closed her eyes, preparing to face the judgment for her sins as she pulled the trigger and fired.

The bolt of magnetized plasma emitted from her pistol passed harmlessly through Kagato's face and hit the wall.

Metaphorically, her jaw dropped to the floor. She didn't expect Kagato to take the liberty of bending the laws of physics just to toy with her.

Kagato laughed softly at Kiyone's anguish. "As I said, you have little input in whether or not I am leaving, but what you just did was… very interesting. You were prepared to sacrifice yourself and everyone here, just to kill one man? That's not something I expected. As I said, I have run out of time to talk. Fear not, I'm sure fate will acquaint us again, some other time. Goodbye." To Kiyone's surprise, Kagato and the Prime Minister began to fizzle out of reality before abruptly disappearing.

"Holograms. Of course, holograms," she muttered.

Ishizuka interrupted, "There's no way he can escape this building. Find him and eliminate him!"

"Right. But where could he have gone if… oh no." Kiyone muttered.

"What is it?"

"What if… but that would only make sense if he was the one who opened the..." She gasped and realized the depth of her discovery. Just then, one of the deputies of the National Assembly walked up to the officer with joy on his face.

"I sincerely give my thanks for you to undertaking the dangerous of rescuing us. Now then, I request that you escort us out of here at… once." He only now noticed that the woman had already rushed back out into the halls. "Why... the nerve of cretins!"

A fellow deputy put a hand on his shoulder. "You shouldn't be so picky with your saviors, Kiro!"

Pinned down and firing blindly into down the hall, Mitsuki was not happy about her situation. She fired another volley of shots before retreating to cover. She reached for her control cube and skillfully operated it with just her left hand. A grenade soon appeared on the floor and Mitsuki quickly snatched it up, pulling the pin and throwing it down the hall. To her surprise, the halls didn't ring from an explosion but filled with a plume of dense smoke.

"Smoke? That'll work too." Mitsuki switched on the infra-red mode on her visuals, and once there was a lull in the incoming fire she leaped out into the hall and aimed for the bright red targets, three of them. She hit two of the three targets before again dodging out of the way.

"Ishizuka? What's the matter with you?!" She yelled. "You said there would be JDCP waiting for us on the outside. I'm waiting!"

"I'm waiting for Officer Makibi's confirmation that she has eliminated Kagato." The lieutenant answered.

"Oh, that's great, lieutenant, really is. In the meantime, what am I supposed to do? My gun is running low on charge here!"

"Officer Makibi will soon deal with the situation. Try to maintain some level of composure until then."

"Composure," Mitsuki repeated with disgust. "Why, I'll show YOU my 'composure' when I get out of here!"

"Hmm… on second thought, I'm sending in the JCPD. Right now. Standby."

* * *

The henchman in the Republican Guard's uniform was inspecting his work as he finished planting the star-shaped bomb on the wall of the basement-level room. "I got to say, that was a very convincing performance you two put on for that officer. Completely fooled her." He commented, looking over to his master.

"I have always had a certain gift for acting. Perhaps I am a celebrity of such caliber in another universe." Kagato responded, then looking over the Prime Minister. With his non-occupied hand, he grabbed hold of the man's left shoulder, looking down into his brown eyes. "But we have no time to discuss such things. Now, shall we take our leave… you know, I never learned your real name."

The Prime Minister sighed as he felt his shoulder being squeezed hard by Kagato. "Hideaki Tojishima."

"Well, mister Tojishima, has our time come to leave yet?"

Tojishima was about to open his mouth to protest when he felt an incredibly overbearing chill run down his spine. There was something about Kagato's stare that penetrated all his layers of mental and physical fortitude, and he suddenly felt very weak. "Y-yes. Let us leave this place."

"Excellent," Kagato said, looking and nodding toward his henchman. With the Prime Minister opening the door leading the trio through the passage, they found themselves walking through the old sewers.

"But… tell me, why would you bother with a bomb when you could've taken the time to escape through here already?" Tojishima asked.

Kagato looked back at him. "It's a simple reason, really; my hand is unbearably tired from holding down a remote detonator for three whole hours."

"Y-you mean that you weren't bluffing!?" Tojishima asked, startled.

"I am a murderer, a thief, a brigand, and many more distasteful occupations that you will soon learn about; yet, in spite of all that, I will tell you right now that I am not a liar. Fifteen men followed me into the National Assembly, and of them," he nudged his head towards his fancily dressed henchmen, "he is the only one who will make it out alive. Do you think I could have convinced them to throw away their comfortable, tranquil lives and become my martyrs if my ideas rang hollow?"

"I suppose not. So shall I become another one of your martyrs?"

"No." He answered quickly. "Fourteen men will die for you, Prime Minister; your one life is not equal to all theirs. To compensate, I have a vital task that you will accomplish for me. Oh, and before I forget…"

* * *

The antique lock on the door was not going to stop Kiyone from apprehending Kagato. Again, she shot through the relic without a second thought and kicked the door down. She rushed down the stairs and was in sight of the door that led into the passage. Her rush forward stopped dead in its tracks, however, when she heard an ominous beeping sound. She only glanced a brief look at the bomb on the wall before her academy training kicked in. She bolted for her only path to safety, the stairs...

Mihoshi, hunkered down behind cover and hoping that the bad guys wouldn't figure out that her weapon had run out of charge, didn't need her communication systems to hear the huge explosion that shook the entire building and nearly toppled her over. As she recovered her bearings, she unconsciously looked towards the source of the explosion, which happened to be the area that she and her partners had entered. Remembering her partner Kiyone's conversation with Ishizuka a few minutes that she picked up from her HUD a few minutes ago, Mihoshi's eyes slowly filled with terror at the possibility of her partner being…

"Kiyone!"

* * *

**PREVIEW OF**

**NEXT PROGRAM**

Mihoshi: Well, I have no idea how we managed to get entangled into that national… something business, but I'm just glad that it's over! Now I can go home and tell Tenchi and the others all about what just happened!

Mitsuki: "Hey, hold it! I haven't seen you in a year and you're just going to leave like we didn't even meet? It's a wonder how Kiyo puts up with you! Besides, I hear that Airi is opening up a brand new special ops division for gifted officers. Now use that beautiful head of yours and think, wouldn't this be a great chance to climb the ladder?"

Mihoshi: "What are you talking about, Mitsuki? There aren't any ladders at headquarters, maybe elevators, but not ladders! Wait, are these SECRET ladders you're talking about? We'll find out in **the next episode of Tenchi Muyo: Miho-Kiyo Complex:**

**Special Intelligence Field Operations**

"It's unquestionably an intriguing proposal!"

* * *

**Authors Note #2: Among Other Changes…**

While I was typing this episode, **I realized that one of my original characters, the Galaxy Police Superintendent, was very similar in personality to Airi Masaki**, a character in the OVA continuity and Tenchi Muyo GXP who also happens to be a high-ranking member of the Galaxy Police. In light of this, I've elected to do a bit of a switch. **The previously male and nameless superintendent has been replaced with Airi**, as she can fill the role just as well. However, since I want Miho-Kiyo Complex's story to be as far removed from the OVA series as possible, **I've decided to change her surname in Miho-Kiyo Complex to "Fujikawa"**. Otherwise, Airi is the same character you're familiar with from the third OVA and GXP. I apologize for the confusion and **I'll soon make edits to the first episode as to maintain consistency going forward.**

**I'll also apologize for the extreme delay in releasing this episode.** I wanted to finish it within a month of episode one, but as I kept working on it, I continually introduced more and more ideas and concepts that delayed my progress on the actual content of the episode. However, I would not necessarily see this as a bad thing, because overall this episode is now more complete and satisfying than what I would've rushed out due to an arbitrary deadline.

**I may also apologize for the increased length of this episode.** To keep myself from draining the reader's resolve and patience, **I originally wanted a hard-limit of 12K words per episode.** However, I soon realized that would not be possible for this episode, especially since this one is particularly important for the introduction and development of a few characters who will play major roles from this point forward. Time will tell if I can still keep to the 12K limit.

Another thing; **I've decided to scrap the title naming convention of "No need for..." that's used in Tenchi Universe.** I realized that it would've gotten old after a while and it wouldn't be funny.

In any case, if you're still around and willing to continue reading, then I insist that you **favorite** it; give a comprehensive (please tell me what you liked and suggest improvements) **review**; tell your friends, fellow fanfiction connoisseurs, and Tenchi Muyo fans who might also be interested; and** stay in touch** for the next episode, which will (hopefully) come out in the near future.


	3. Special Intelligence Field Operations

A_ great bolt of lightning struck in the sky, and for a split second Darjeeling could see the primal, half-crazed look that Monmohan was giving her. Before she could comprehend how he managed to get inside her house, he rushed forward and pushed Darjeeling back, forcing her back to the wall. _

"_Darjeeling! I can't stand it! I can't take it anymore! You… I just don't understand what you want from me! I've done everything I've I could, and you still won't accept me!"_

"_Monmohan, all I want from you is to leave me alone! I don't love you, I never did. Please, calm down and just leave. There's nothing you can do for me."_

_Darjeeling tried to move past Monmohan, but he didn't budge. Instead, he stood his ground. Another bolt of lightning passed and she could see the tears pouring from his blue eyes, and the gun he was in the middle of grabbing out of his pants. "Monmohan, what are you doing?" _

"_You say no to me, but we both know that it's a lie. It's your father who's fed you all these lies about me, he's the one who won't allow us to be together. He's in the way, but don't worry, Darjeeling, I'll silence that old fool!" _

"_Please, Monmohan, just stop this already! You can't get what you want by force! It's just not going to happen!"_

_A loud knock came from the front door. An authoritative voice came through, "This is Tarmilano Personal Security! Monmohan Kesri, we know you're in there! Open up!" _

_Monmohan panicked momentarily before looking back at Darjeeling. "So he wants me dead that badly? Fine! I'll grant his wish, but I'll be taking you with me!" _

"_No! Please!" Darjeeling tried harder to push back against him, but he held his ground like a stone monolith. _

"_Don't worry, Darjeeling. Everything… everything is going to be fine. We won't be able to run away and get married on Jurai as I wanted, but Tsunami will allow us to love each other as her angels." He said. _

"_Monmohan Kesri, open this door right now!" Another order from outside came. "Damn! Get that door-buster over here!" _

_Monmohan started pulling his finger on the trigger; Darjeeling looked away and closed her eyes, just as a loud bang came from the front door; the public security broke through the reinforced door and rushed in... and-"_

The television screen suddenly went to black before reconnecting to a brand new program, announced by a pre-recorded voice announced. "We interrupt this program to provide a special update regarding recent events."

Somewhere, a woman groaned loudly in annoyance...

A young, spry-looking man sat a large desk, looking right at the camera with a smile on his face. "Good early morning, Jurai City!" He began enthusiastically. "This is Shinjitsu News, the fastest and most reliable news coverage in the Juraian Empire for 194 years and running! My name is Yuji Asakusa, covering for our daytime anchors Haruna and Itsuki. It is currently one hour, thirty minutes Standard Jurai Time, and the current forecast is as follows: partially cloudy with temperatures sitting around thirteen degrees Nenikusa, and an anticipated rise to twenty-three degrees Nenikusa by sunrise."

"The story! Get to the story, you stupid intern!" Somebody off-screen growled.

He paused awkwardly for a moment from the interruption. He cleared his throat and continued as if nothing happened. "Right, moving along to our special report, we've just received an update regarding the hostage crisis at the National Assembly building. A representative of the Jurai City Police Department is about to speak regarding the incident, we'll cut to that now..."

The screen changed to the view of a press conference in a crowded room. One man dressed in police garb stood at a podium on a stage, involuntarily twitching one of his legs from having over a dozen cameras being focused on his face. "I'll try to keep this as clear as possible." He began. "I have no reason to fudge any details, so please take my word as indisputable fact. Upon receiving the signal from our friends from the Galaxy Police, our Special Assault Team proceeded to storm the building from the front entrance. They immediately entered into a firefight with the militants, resulting in fourteen dead and wounded for the latter. The team sustained no casualties in the assault."

"What about that explosion we heard afterward? Was it caused by the Galaxy Police? What it a bomb planted by-"

"The cause of the explosion has yet to be determined. All we know is that one of the Galaxy Police Officers, whose identity has not been released, sustained moderate injuries from the explosion and was transported to a local hospital."

"The assemblymen, what happened to the assemblymen?" Another reporter asked.

"In total, 199 of the 201 members of the National Assembly are accounted for. One deputy, Heihichiro Suboru, has been confirmed to have been killed during the initial takeover of the building. The other unaccounted is... Prime Minister Hideaki Tojishima. Yes… the Prime Minister is missing... Kagato is missing, I should say."

The crowd went into a frenzy from the news. Before things got out of hand, the police representative spoke above the crowd. "The commander of the Galaxy Police forces is also here to give his perspective of events. Please, welcome him."

Two JCPD officers then dragged into the room. He was wearing a cheap trench coat and a strange device over his face. "Hey, wait! I didn't consent to this! Let go of me!" He cried out. He was let go by the officers and was about to run away when he noticed the arsenal of cameras already pointed at him. "Oh… alright." He stepped behind the podium and carefully took off the device that was covering his face and set it to the floor.

"My name... is Ryoji Ishizuka, I am a First Lieutenant in the Intelligence Division of the Galaxy Police, and I commanded a squad of operatives to covertly infiltrate the National Assembly. Now, what mister…" Ryoji paused, as he looked towards the police commander, at a loss for his name. "What… that guy said… is correct. Kagato has escaped alongside the prime minister. The explosion was caused by a bomb that Kagato had smuggled into the National Assembly, and he used it to cover his escape right when my men… excuse me, women... went in to apprehend him." The JCPD has informed me that they've scoured the entirety of the surrounding area three times over but couldn't find a trace of either of them. So, yeah… suffice it to say, we've sort of lost them."

The room again erupted into a flurry. " Why did he take the Prime Minister?" One reporter managed to yell out.

"Why he took the Prime Minister?" Ryoji repeated. He scratched his head. "Honestly, I don't know. He should know that a ransom won't be accepted, although I could be wrong about that, I'm not familiar with Juraian laws… in fact, this is the first time I've been on..." Ryoji stopped himself and he smacked his lips together uncomfortably. "Well, that's all I have to say. My job here is done, and I need to submit a report to my superior… goodbye!" Ishizuka picked his helmet up and quickly walked off the stage.

The feed went back to the news station. "Very troubling news indeed," Yuji commented. "Hopefully, Kagato and the Prime Minister will be found soon and this story is put to rest before it spirals into a disaster. This concludes our update for this special report. We will now return to this network's regularly scheduled early-morning programming, with Godou Funabashi and Mai Machinaki making their long-anticipated debut in the 322nd season premiere of _The Edge of Our Dreams..._"

The television screen went black with a press of the button. The woman carelessly dropped the remote controller to the ground as growled again. "Right, like I'm going to trust those hack writers after how they treated Saionji and Togusa… still makes my blood boil." She looked over to the bed next to her… noticing that the person under the covers was still fast asleep. She instinctively yawned at the sight. "But I imagine the programming you're used to on Terra isn't much better, right?"

* * *

**III: ****Special Intelligence Field Operations **

Airi Fujikawa laid on her sofa and stared up at the ceiling of her office, as she usually did while deep in thought. A familiar beeping alert came from her desk, and she reluctantly got up and walked over to see who was calling this time. Her eyes widened when she read the name "His Grace and Blessed by Lady Tsunami, Emperor Azusa Masaki Jurai," on her console.

She accepted the call and turned around to the screen-window that was in the middle of turning on.

Azusa looked about the same as he did from last time, apart from his eyes looking heavy on the verge of closing from tiredness.

Airi's lip quivered; she still wasn't sure how she was going to tell the emperor that she had utterly failed. She mustered her resolve, stiffened her body and looked the man right in the eyes.

"Apologies, emperor, but it seems that Kagato is much more... interesting than you or I could have imagined." She said calmly.

Azusa's stone-cold face didn't react to the news. Airi took it as a sign that he already knew what happened.

"Right." She continued. So, I'm guessing that my end of the bargain hasn't been fulfilled yet." Airi suggested.

Azusa's expression remained unmoved by Airi's sarcasm. "Kagato is an enemy of the state that must be eliminated as soon as possible. In spite of underwhelming results, I will allow the Galaxy Police to continue assisting the local authorities in his apprehension for the foreseeable future. Do not take my leniency for granted, Superintendent Fujikawa."

"Thank you," Airi said. The screen promptly went dark. She sat down in her desk chair and took a deep breath. She wiped the non-existent sweat off of her forehead as she exhaled. "Father was right, gambling is a dirty habit."

* * *

The bright lights of the room nearly blinded Kiyone when she first tried to open her eyes. A grumble escaped her mouth as blinked rapidly.

"About time you woke up, Miss Makibi. It's not like you died or anything!" Somebody familiar suggested jokingly.

Kiyone opened her eyes again turned her head to the noise; she saw a woman sat down in a chair next to her; sporting her crimson hair and unmistakable "easy-going" smile. "Mitsuki?"

"This again?" Mitsuki asked, annoyed. She sighed. "Yes, it's me, Mitsuki. Although I should probably give you a little leeway this time around. I mean, you did come very close to dying there."

Kiyone nodded slightly, She looked down at herself and noticed she was wearing a thin white gown instead of her combat suit, instantly telling her she was in a hospital. She used her elbows to prop herself up on the bed. "Where's… where's Mihoshi?"

"Miss Blonde Bubblehead?" Mitsuki repeated. "Good question, I could've sworn she was with me in this room. When we got here, I had to fight tooth and nail to keep her claws off you while you were under; you're welcome, by the way." She stood up and took a better look at the entire room. "Well, I hear that the food they serve in Juraian hospitals is edible compared to the… stuff… that they serve us at headquarters." Mitsuki walked over to the door and peered out into the hallway. "Yeah, she must've just went exploring for a bite to-" she felt her foot bump against something. "Oh, nevermind. Found her!"

Kiyone had a deadpan expression as her partner was dragged across the floor and into the room by Mitsuki. "Why am I not surprised? This is exactly the reason it was so hard to keep that job at Freshness Burger." She said.

"Freshness Burger? What's that?" Mitsuki asked in the middle of carefully lifting Mihoshi by the shoulders, involuntary grunting from the effort. She sat the officer down a chair near the door and turned towards Kiyone, expecting an answer.

"Oh… that's just… eh." Kiyone stopped, unable to come up with a decent explanation that would satiate Mitsuki's curiosity.

"Kiyo, don't tell me… you had to work jobs on Terra besides the Galaxy Police?"

Kiyone could see the horror Mitsuki was entrapped in from her wide-open eyes and open mouth. More importantly, Kiyone was angry at herself for not realizing the magnitude of the mistake she would make mentioning her minimum wage employment to somebody as proud as Mitsuki Tsukushi. She sighed, knowing that Mitsuki wasn't going to ignore an obvious lie.

"It was either that or living like a freeloader in the mountains. Maybe I'll tell you more about it later, but I'm not in the mood right now." Kiyone said confidently.

Mitsuki nodded, "Fine. Oh, hey! I just remembered that I wanted to show you something." She ducked down and grabbed something under the chair she was sitting in and walked over to Kiyone, handing it to her. Kiyone immediately noticed it was a helmet with the massive dent where a person's head would've been covered. "What do you think? Some debris hit struck you right here; it probably would've killed you right away if you weren't wearing any protection."

Kiyone nodded. "Speaking of which, what happened back there?" She asked. "What happened to Kagato?"

"Gone. The guy took off like the wind, and we were too busy digging you out of the rubble that we couldn't look for him ourselves. He took the prime minister with him, too."

"Very strange," Kiyone said.

"Agreed. I mean, Kagato doesn't seem like the kind of guy who would be into that sort of thing."

"Wha-" Kiyone began before being interrupted by the door opening. In came a man wearing a long, white coat and blacks pants, and holding a small electronic tablet in his hands. The faint smile on his face looked professional and well-rehearsed.

"Good morning. My name is Dr. Yutuboshi, here to perform my hourly checkup on you. How are you feeling?"

"Good. What happened to me?" Kiyone asked.

The doctor looked down at the medical report he had attached to a clipboard. "Let's see here. When you were admitted to this hospital, we noted that you had: hairline fractures on four of your ribs; several cuts on your legs and torso, and bruises on your right arm and shoulder; nothing serious to worry about… nothing except for one thing." Our scans showed that you may have also suffered a concussion from the explosion. You don't seem to be exhibiting any symptoms, but as a precaution, let me ensure you're cognitively capable: What is your name?"

"Kiyone Makibi."

"What is her name?" He pointed towards Kiyone's still-conscious partner.

"Mitsuki Tsukushi."

"It's actually 'Tsuku-shi', not 'Tsu-kushi'." Mitsuki interrupted. She pouted when she saw that neither Kiyone or the doctor noticed her.

Seven plus three is…?"

"Ten."

"How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Four."

"What language are we speaking?"

"Standardized Juraian."

"The current emperor of Jurai is…?"

"Azusa Masaki Jurai, the thirty-ninth emperor so far."

"What year is it?"

"1997… sorry, I meant Jurai 12530, or Galactic Universal 10914."

"What is your job?"

"I am a Detective First-Class of the Galaxy Police. My current assignment is to… well, that's classified."

"Very good, it seems there was no significant damage," The doctor continued. "As for your injuries, we've administered a healthy dose of Tsukino-092 into your bloodstream to speed up your body's natural healing process tenfold. You've been asleep for about twelve hours, so you should be rested and healthy enough to move on your own. Try standing up, if you would."

Kiyone threw the covers off her body and swung her legs off of the bed. Mitsuki lent a hand, and with her help, Kiyone managed to stand up. "I feel stiff." She said as she balanced herself.

"That's to be expected, your ribs haven't fully recovered from being fractured. From here, all I prescribe for you is to refrain from any serious physical activity for about five to seven days. Take any common pain-relieving medications if you need them, and please don't get caught in another explosion."

Mitsuki looked at Kiyone in astonishment. "Some of the Mihoshi's luck must have rubbed off on you. You managed to slip right out of Tokimi's hands and make her look like an idiot!"

"No, Mihoshi would've survived the same explosion with just a few burnt hairs," Kiyone said. "I'm way out of her league."

"You're free to leave." The doctor interrupted. He bowed to the two women and quickly walked out of the room.

The sound of the door closing behind the doctor was somehow enough to wake up Mihoshi. The officer sprang up in her chair with a yelp and immediately scanned her eyes around the room, zeroing in on her partner. "Oh, Kiyone! I thought for sure that you were going to die back there!" She bawled, grabbing hold of Kiyone and hugging her tightly. "I'm so glad to see that you're alright!"

"Ugh, can't... breath..." Kiyone squealed.

"Don't squeeze her to death, bubblehead!" Mitsuki said, ripping Mihoshi off of Kiyone. "And what were you doing sleeping in the middle of the hallway?" Mitsuki asked.

Mihoshi cocked her head sideways in confusion. "I was sleeping?"

"Yes!" Mitsuki answered. "You were sprawled out right in front of the door; most people don't do that sort of thing, you know."

"Uh, well… I guess I was really tired or something?" Mihoshi suggested. "Everyone has their limits."

Kiyone was in the middle of putting on a pair of generic slippers that were left in the room. She glanced at Mihoshi as she stood up and walked near the door. "The problem is that you meet your limits too easily. Almost regularly, I'd say."

"I don't follow what you're saying, Kiyone," Mihoshi said as both she and Mitsuki followed Kiyone into the hallway.

Mitsuki placed her arm around Mihoshi's neck and whispered right into her ear. "She means to say you're dead weight, bubblehead. Kiyo would just really appreciate it if you didn't fall asleep whenever your body felt like it."

Mihoshi shrugged off Mitsuki's arm. "That's just unfair. You can't judge a woman by something she can't control!"

"So you're saying that you've always been a lazy slacker?"

"What!? No!" Mihoshi said, panicked. "I didn't mean it like that! I just mean that certain people have special attributes that make them distinct. I mean, your Juraian, I'm Seniwan, so we're bound to be different somehow!"

"Oh, so now you're blaming your entire people for you being lazy?" Mitsuki pressed. "That's cruel. I bet even Kagato wouldn't blame all Juraians for him being a real piece of work!"

"Oh… no! Mitsuki, we both know that's wrong! I'm not talking about culture, I'm talking about biology, gene-" Mihoshi bumped into something mid-sentence. A man had just walked out of another door as Mihoshi was passing by. Both Mihoshi and the man ended up on the floor, with one of the man's hands accidentally running through Mihoshi's hair.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! Luck hasn't been too good for me lately." He said as he got up from off the floor. He immediately felt a sense of deja vu overtake him as he looked as women he bumped into. "Well, what a coincidence."

Kiyone greeted him. "You're that Republican Guard from earlier, Junichiro Yoritomo, right? How are you doing?"

"Fine, maybe even good if I didn't have to eat hospital food," Junichiro answered, helping Mihoshi stand up. "I've just been given a clean bill of health so I was on my way out of here. All things considered, I'm just glad my government job will foot the bill for the medical costs."

"That's good to hear, but what do you think you're going to do now? Go back to your job as if nothing happened?" Kiyone asked.

Junichiro waited a little while before answering. "That's something I've been thinking about for some time. But… but now, I think I know what I'm going to do. Say, miss… what was your name again?" He asked.  
"Detective First-Class Kiyone Makibi."

"Right. Kiyone Makibi, do you think… do you think I could tag along with you? I mean, I want to go to the Galaxy Police Headquarters. I have a few things I need to tell your superintendent. I was going to arrange a meeting eventually, but it would be convenient to talk to her sooner rather than later. Please, it's very important to me." He said.

Kiyone looked puzzled at the request but quickly nodded. "Of course. We owe you anyway for telling us about that underground passage. I'll mention it to her when I return to Galaxy Police Headquarters. As long as she isn't too busy, I'm sure she'll listen."

"Hey, I have a question for you." Kiyone interrupted. "When we went down to find this secret passage you talk about, we found that the found the wall was already open. Did you leave it like that when you found it?"

"N-no. I distinctly remember closing it again." Junichiro answered. "Why do you ask?"

"So that theory of mine was right." She muttered to herself. "Kagato let himself in through that passage. But… but nobody knew about it except for us. How could he have known about it, too?"

Mitsuki put a hand on Kiyone's shoulder. "Leave the investigating for later. Let's get out of here already. And you…" she turned to Junichiro, "I guess you can come along. I kind of want to see how long it will take for Fujikawa to kick you out of her office. I'm betting for two minutes at most."

"Keep your money in your pocket; I won't waste her time. In fact, I think she'll be very glad to see somebody like me."

"Oh, getting some funny ideas, old man?" Mitsuki teased.

He shook his head. "I've already tried with the whole 'marriage and kids' thing. Suffice it to say, things didn't end very well. Don't you worry about the pride and sanctity of your boss."

Leading the group, Kiyone walked out of the front doors of the hospital before she had stopped dead in her tracks. She looked around the area and noted the fresh, cool air and the many people walking the streets on the morning commute. She nodded and looked back at Mitsuki. "Say… I don't know where the Yagami is…"

* * *

After explaining to a couple of JCPD officers that the Galaxy Police will eventually pay the ticket for the Yagami's blatant parking violation, the trio plus one hopped on board and made their trek back to headquarters. Junichiro, assuming his status as an unwanted guest, quietly sat in the ship's commons room, while Kiyone, Mitsuki, and Mihoshi all got redressed in their standard Galaxy Police uniforms.

Things had gone smoothly until they had touched down on headquarters. As they exited the hanger where the Yagami was parked and went through the narrow hallway to t, they had encountered the security gate, a large atrium where security guards stood ready to search and approve access for officers to enter headquarters.

One of the guards, a rather bored-looking man, saw on the group come in. He walked up to the group and nodded towards the three women. "I'm going to assume you didn't bring back any oddities from Jurai City." He looked suspiciously at Junichiro. "Well, almost. Where's your pass, sir?"

"What pass?" Junichiro asked.

"Your pass authorizing the appointment with whoever you're scheduled to speak with here at Galaxy Police Headquarters."

"Oh, so you want me to print one out for you now?" Junichiro suggested.

The officer covered his face with one hand and sighed. "Great, another one." He turned around and called to his fellow security guard, who had just finished scanning someone head to toe with a scanning device. "Hey, I'm escorting this Juraian down to the secretary's office, I'll be right back."

"My _name_ is Junichiro". The Juraian said, sounding slightly offended. "And tell me, how exactly was I supposed to know what number to call for a space station right in the middle of nowhere?"

"I suppose we'll see you around, Junichiro," Kiyone said. She nodded to Mitsuki and Mihoshi as they continued along to the superintendent's office.

Airi Fujikawa herself was behind her desk on a large mat she brought out from a nearby closet. At the moment, she was performing push-ups, grunting softly every time she pressed up.

"Forty-seven… forty-eight… forty-nine…"

"What are you doing back there, Airi?" Mitsuki asked.

"Hm?" Airi looked up at the women who let themselves into her office. "Oh, you're finally back?" Airi blurted out. The superintendent carefully stood up from her exercise and walked back over to her desk and sat down. She wiped the sweat off of her face and held her hands together, but despite her attempt to pretend nothing happened, she noticed how all three officers looked puzzled and somewhat uncomfortable at her. "Yes, I do calisthenics." She finally admitted, breaking the ice. "Honestly, how else do people expect me to stay in shape when my entire job involves desk work?"

Mihoshi jumped up with enthusiasm. "Exactly! People are so unrealistic about that sort of thing! I mean, they try all the fixes except for the ones that work. Do you remember that one fad where you don't eat anything for a whole day, but then you make up for it by eating a bowl of-", Kiyone covered Mihoshi's mouth before she derailed the conversation.

"Miss Fujikawa, I want answers. You sent three…" Kiyone stopped to remember that quirky intelligence officer named Ryoji Ishizuka, "four officers to deal with a hostage crisis on Jurai."

Airi nodded. "Yes, I did. Is Jurai City as impressive as everyone says? "

"I didn't get a lot of time to look around," Kiyone answered, letting go of Mihoshi's mouth. "Never mind that, I want to know what you were thinking with going through with such a… such a reckless course of action."

Airi was silent for a good moment. "I could tell you, but you're probably not going to like what I have to say." She said reluctantly.

"Tell me," Kiyone ordered.

"If you insist," Airi said shrugging. "The truth is I only sent in a total of four officers for Operation: Hangyaku because I had the intention of letting Kagato escape."

"What?" All three officers repeated in surprise.

"I had gotten the idea right after speaking with Emperor Azusa. He had asked me to deal with Kagato, but after thinking over the situation, I got the feeling that there was something more to Kagato than meets the eye. I mean, why would anyone want to just take over a government building and make irrational demands to the emperor himself? It's obvious that there was more going on, even Azusa agreed with me when I mentioned it to him. Even if I wanted him caught, he wasn't going to let that happen."

"Curiosity isn't an excuse to let a criminal escape," Kiyone said.

Airi waved off Kiyone's comment. "You don't need to tell me that, but I'm not letting him go just yet. I have a plan that involves him, a very convoluted one, but a plan that I've been thinking about for a long time. Where should I start? Well, we all know that the Galaxy Police doesn't have a stellar reputation when it comes to corruption. It's the truth, especially since the reason I'm sitting at this desk is that the last guy was caught performing bribery. Of course, I'm glad that I get to be the superintendent, but the issue runs much deeper than one person."

"Obviously, but who do you think is the culprit? Got any names?" Mitsuki asked.

"Not a single letter to start," Airi admitted.

"So, you want us to help you with that?" Kiyone asked, knowing where this was going. "Why us, though? What makes us officers special compared to any of the two million officers that work for the Galaxy Police?"

Airi smirked. "It's interesting that you bring that up. I indeed looked into your records to assess your skills and performance, and as I said earlier, they are all exemplary, but that was only a secondary priority for me. The truth is I wanted to find officers that I saw as wasted potential."

"Huh? Wasted?" Mihoshi repeated. "Hey, you're not calling us lazy, are you?"

"No, I am..." Mitsuki quickly jabbed in.

Airi ignored Mitsuki's correction. "Quite the opposite. To begin my search, I decided to look at one of the more recent graduating classes from the Galaxy Police Academy, the class of Galactic Year 10909- your class, and I narrowed the list down to the officers that had seen the least promotions since entering the force." Airi looked at Kiyone and Mihoshi. "You two were the prime suspects. You two have been subject to just two promotions: first to Detective Second-Class a year after graduation, and then to First-Class the next year."

"Correct," Kiyone answered immediately. "And being stationed on Terra didn't help matters, either."

Airi nodded and turned to Mitsuki. "You appear to have fared somewhat better since you've been promoted four times- to Detective-Sergeant, but I suspect that's because you've been much more active than these two."

Mitsuki nodded. "Fifty-one successful operations and sorties; thirty-two of them by myself, and no failures so far. I've worked so hard that I've nearly died in service about four times! I just feel like I deserve something more than… I just want to be respected, that's all!"

"Of course, of course." Airi nodded again before looking at all three women. "Now, the point I'm trying to get across is that you three have been subject to unjust treatment when compared to your skills and record and that this treatment is at least partially due to certain corrupted elements within the Galaxy Police. You want what's deserved, right? Well, I have a proposal you're going to be interested in."

They all instinctively leaned closer to Airi.

"I want to create a special operations unit to investigate and purge any corruption within the ranks. The personnel assigned to this unit would not only have to be exceptionally skilled, but they would also have to maintain complete and absolute loyalty to me and only me."

"My question still hasn't been answered. How does Kagato play into this?" Kiyone asked.

Airi groaned slightly. "I was just about to get to that. You may not know this, but the bureaucracy of the Galaxy Police is nothing to joke about. I am not a dictator, I have to share power with multiple levels of bureaucracy that leads up the Grand Committee, headed by General Secretariat Kenshin Uesugi. Hypothetically, if I wanted to make any major changes or additions to the Galaxy Police, for example, creating a new division or unit, it would have to go through the wringer of debate and voting before a final approved bill is sent to my desk, and that's assuming that they would even support it in the first place."

"So you want Kagato to show up to their meeting and intimidate them into doing what you want?" Mitsuki interrupted. "Sounds like a great idea."

Airi shook her head and muffled a chuckle. "Under normal circumstances, I probably wouldn't be able to persuade the committee to approve my special unit, but Kagato's escaping presents an opportunity to get around that. With a high-value criminal on the loose, and with my pledge to Emperor Azusa himself to bring him to justice, I have a good chance of swaying the enough of the committee to my side, regardless of Uesugi's opinion."

Mihoshi looked disappointed. "So we're going to be chasing that weird guy again? I'm not sure I like that; he didn't seem to be a very nice person."

"You're a Galaxy Police officer, shouldn't you be glad that you're getting something to do?" Airi asked.

"Superintendent, trust me when I say that from my personal experience and observations, Detective First-Class Kuramitsu would be absolutely fine with living on Terra for the rest of her life," Kiyone said. Mihoshi smiled, not saying a word.

"You should let Kuramitsu decide that for herself. I mean, you are her friend, aren't you?" Airi asked jokingly. "This unit won't just be Kagato, though. Apart from my personal goals, there is a genuine need for a special operations unit that can be deployed at a moment's notice any planet that requests our assistance. Kagato wasn't the first instance when this need was highlighted, and it certainly won't be the last."

Now, before I lose myself in my ideas, I want to know: Do any of you have any objections so far?"

"I do," Kiyone said, instantly raising her hand. "Creating a personal squad to secretly stamp out corruption without knowledge by other high-level officials is not proper conduct for the superintendent of the Galaxy Police, not to mention inefficient. I would suggest arranging a sweep across the board for any corruption, approved and organized by the Grand Committee."

Airi held her two hands together as she looked at Kiyone. "The information on your report was entirely correct. You are straight-laced to a fault. Tell me, do you honestly think I would go through the trouble of arranging all this personally if I thought your suggestion would work?"

"I suppose not," Kiyone admitted. "You seem very committed towards this."

"I am. This is the only way. Corruption is not something that can be ironed out like wrinkles on a dress; we're dealing with something more like a parasite that survives by hiding very, very well. What you're suggesting has already been done many times in the past, and every time it ended up as a good-intentioned waste of time and money. Whichever crooks are making bank at our expense will see my move long before it reaches them. No, a covert investigation by a small group is the only way we'll make any progress."

Kiyone scratched her head, sighing. "I see your point. Still, what if I don't want to be a part of this?"

Airi sighed. "When I was a cadet at the Galaxy Police Academy, in my downtime I often read about many of the Galaxy's famous leaders, and I noticed that they all had one thing in common: they didn't just order people to do what they wanted, they also inspired people to dedicate themselves fully to their cause. Take Minamoto Kuramitsu for example; sure, he may have been a tactical genius educated at one of Jurai's finest military academies, but how far do you think he would've gotten if he wasn't capable of inspiring the people of Seniwa to rise against Juraian oppression?

Mihoshi jumped up with another idea. "From what I remember, Minamoto used his claim as the second born of Tsunami to command people to join his army. That's also why my family is still in power; we're direct descendants of Tsunami, even me!"

Mitsuki scoffed at Mihoshi's history lesson. "And anyone who thought otherwise didn't live for very long, right? Oh, be a pal and don't tell your family I said anything!"

Airi raised her hand and quieted Mitsuki. "Regardless of the specific circumstances, Minamoto was able to inspire people to follow him and to have them accept him as their champion. Likewise, I wish to inspire people, I wish to inspire you three to work with me, but I need to get one thing off of my chest first," She took a deep breath before continuing as if preparing herself for what she was about to say. "Earlier, I lied about threatening to put you three on trial in case Kagato escaped, and I lied about the threat of Jurai withholding financial aid in case our operation was a failure."

"You what?!" All three officers cried out.

Airi put her hands up in admission. "Given the strange circumstance of selecting three Galaxy Police officers specifically out of a pool of two million, I was worried that you three weren't going to go along with Operation: Hangyaku without an extra 'incentive'. Going forward, I know that blackmail won't be enough for you to accept me as your leader, so I'll have to earn your trust instead." Airi looked right at Kiyone. "Makibi, if you don't want anything to do with me or my special unit, then you can turn around and walk out of my office, no strings attached." She looked at Mitsuki and Mihoshi. "And that goes for you two as well. If I have to force people to work for me though cheating and bribery, then I'll be no better than the people I'm trying to expose."

An awkward silence filled the room as Airi finished. All three officers found themselves at a loss for words. Mitsuki put both her hands behind her head, her eyes closed as she took a deep breath.

Mitsuki was the first to answer as she clenched her hand into a fist, placing it over her heart. "I don't know many people who would admit to and own up to lying to others, so I'll respect you for that. Now, if you want us to let you promote us that badly, then sure, I have nothing to complain about."

Mihoshi nodded excitedly. "Me neither! My father always told me that honesty is the first step to friendship, so if you promise to keep being honest, I'll gladly join the unit and be your friend!"

Kiyone sighed and looked into Airi's eyes. "If it means stopping Kagato, making the Galaxy Police a better organization," Kiyone glanced towards Mihoshi," and keeping her out of trouble, then I'll commit myself to this unit too."

Airi smiled. "Thank you. I know we can do this."

The doors opened, and the Superintendent's favorite old butler came in with another small cart of specially-brewed tea.

"Oh, it's so nice to see Miss Fujikawa having visitors in her office." He said as he let himself inside noticed the others. "The Superintendent is such a lonely job, after all."

"I resent that, Watari!" Airi said to him.

"But you do not deny that it is true." Watari humbly replied as he carefully placed the teacups and saucers onto the superintendent's desk. He left as soon as he came.

Airi sighed as she poured tea for herself and her new subordinates. "In any case, I still need to come up with a name for this unit, but nothing has stuck with me so far. I would appreciate the help."

"Is this unit going to be an independent division, just like Intelligence or Logistics?" Kiyone asked, taking a sip of tea. She winced slightly from that taste, not expecting it to be so hot.

"Hm, probably not," Airi answered. "Divisions are supposed to be major branches of the Galaxy Police comprised of thousands of personnel, not just a single squad of a few officers; that wouldn't sit well with the committee. I'm thinking… I think it should be created as a sub-unit of the Intelligence Division. It would officially serve as the division's field operations unit, tasked with gathering information for local authorities and other branches of the Galaxy Police when needed." She paused to take a drink from her tea. She casually wriggled the cup in her hands as she thought. "I still can't think of something that would fit, however."

"We could call it: 'Galaxy Intelligence and Special Operations, 'GISO' for short," Kiyone said confidently.

Mitsuki downed her entire cup of tea in a single sip before turning to Kiyone. "No, that's way too average for a name. How about: 'Special Intelligence Field Operations', as in 'SIFO'?"

"That's an improvement?" Kiyone asked skeptically.

"SIFO?" Airi repeated, ignoring Kiyone. "I like it, Detective-Sergeant. Alright, we're going with that. Now," She addressed all three of them. "If you'll excuse me, I need to prepare a good speech to the Grand Committee to get this whole thing set into motion. It should take a day at most, so you're free to do whatever you want until then. She turned to Kiyone. "Kiyone, I heard you took on an explosion down there during our operation. I hope you get healed quickly because SIFO needs all of its members in top shape."

"I'll try my best to do nothing at all, superintendent," Kiyone answered.

The meeting was concluded at last. As the soon-to-be members of SIFO walked out of the Superintendent's office, Junichiro, who was standing right next to the door, tripped on his foot and bumped into Mihoshi, again. "Oh, so sorry! I just can't help myself today! Excuse me." He said innocently before walking into the office.

Mihoshi pouted. "Even I don't do that twice daily…" She turned back to Mitsuki. "So, what do you think SIFO stands for, anyway?"

"Good question," Mitsuki said, unsurprised that Mihoshi didn't remember a thing that was said a minute ago. "I think it means 'Super Important Flossing Organization'; we're going to travel the Galaxy and make sure everybody is flossing their teeth, and anyone caught with cavities or gum disease is getting jailed for self-negligence!" She turned to Kiyone. "What do you think about that?"

"As long as we start with Kagato, I won't mind at all," Kiyone answered nonchalantly.

"Of course. So, you're clocking your single vacation day on Terra?"

"I still have things to bring back from that planet, so I might as well get that over with before we get our orders from the Superintendent."

Mihoshi sprouted up suddenly. "Oh, Mitsuki, do you want to come with us to Earth? It'd be great to introduce you to our friends over there!"

Um… sure." Mitsuki answered. She threw her hands up and shrugged. "Sure, I have nothing better to do."

Airi poured herself another cup from her teapot. "I should give that butler a raise." Her silence was broken when she heard another beep from her desk. She pressed down on the call button and answered. "What is it, secretary? I wasn't expecting another meeting."

The secretary's voice came over the intercom. "Apologies, but this man came with those three women that you just spoke with. His name is Junichiro Yoritomo, and he's come from Jurai to speak with you. Should I let him in?"

"From Jurai? That sounds strange… and interesting. Let him in."

A man walked in dressed in semi-formal clothing. With graying hairs on the side of his head, he was certainly older than her, but something made her feel that he was the kind of person that felt like age was just a number.

"Hello, I apologize for the sudden appointment. That's just how things ended up." He began.

"I see. Airi replied, unsure of where this was going. She decided to keep quiet and let him start talking.

* * *

The soft chirping from outside woke Tenchi up in that morning. He groaned before he threw himself out of bed and reluctantly put on today's set of clothes. He slowly walked downstairs and looked over at the kitchen, which through the open doorway he could see Sasami was already busying herself with preparing breakfast.

They looked at each other at the same time, almost expecting to see each other right there at that exact time. Likewise, an exchange of smiles was all the communication they needed right then and there. Tenchi walked out of the house and near the lake, knowing full well how clingy Ryoko tended to be in the morning.

He sat himself down on the pier next to the house overlooking the lake. Tenchi sighed, as he knew it was the calm before the storm; as soon as Ryoko and Ayeka woke up, he would have to make sure to not get himself into a "compromised" position between the two.

"Man, I really got saved last time by Kiyone. How am I going to keep this house standing without someone like her around?" He asked himself. He groaned. "I can already feel the clock ticking away before it happens again."

He cleared his mind and focused on why he came out here in the first place: tranquility. The short but consistent delay between when he woke up and when Sasami finished preparing breakfast every morning was very important to Tenchi because this was the only time throughout the entire day when he was guaranteed to not be bothered by anyone else. Just for this very perfect moment, he was free amidst the comforting morning sunlight and gentle nature surrounding his house, and most importantly, the near-perfect silence, all coming together to form a more perfect harmony...

Or so Tenchi thought. It wasn't Ryoko or Ayeka who were causing the ground to violently shake- since they're too tired to do that until after breakfast but it was a spaceship passing into Earth's atmosphere and speeding toward the Masaki residence outside Okayama, Japan that did it.

Tenchi's initial surprise was replaced with a fear of what would come next. Assuming it was the Galaxy Police Frigate Yagami, it's pilots theoretically had only a 66.6% repeating chance of actually landing the ship properly-depending on whether the autopilot, Kiyone or Mihoshi was the one piloting the vessel-with lovable-but-clumsy Mihoshi being the weak link. To his pleasant surprise, the Yagami beat the odds and managed to land in its usual spot in a clearing in the forest clearing near the house.

"Well, I'll be," Tenchi said with astonishment. "They didn't crash into the lake this time! Maybe things won't be so bad after all."

Tenchi walked back inside and waited for them. He didn't even wait for them to knock on the door before opening it for them. He immediately greeted Kiyone and Mihoshi but was surprised to see a third officer peeking over their shoulders.

"And who would this be?" Tenchi asked, casually pointing at the red-haired beauty.

"A friend of your friend, Mitsuki Tsukushi at your service. Who are you?" She asked.

Kiyone stepped in between them and introduced the boy to her partner. "This is Tenchi Masaki. He lives here in the mountains, and he was generous enough to keep quiet about aliens living near his house."

Tenchi nodded and looked at Kiyone. "So, what happened out there?"

"It'd take too long to explain, but all three of us are getting transferred. We're here just to collect our belongings. Tomorrow, we're supposed to return to headquarters again."

Sasami's cheery voice rang through the house suddenly. "Breakfast is ready, Tenchi! Where are you?" The young princess ran out to the front where she heard the commotion. An unmistakably childish curiosity came onto her face when seeing Mitsuki. "Who are you?"

"Mitsuki Tsukushi, and what's your name?" Mitsuki asked nicely and kneeling down to speak to her at eye level.

Sasami smiled happily. "I'm Sasami, this planet's undisputed master of meals and conscious of all things delicious! Please, come and join us for breakfast!"

"Oh, thank you," Mitsuki said eagerly before a sudden shock knocked her off balance. "Wait, did you just say you're Sasami? As in… you're Princess Sasami?"

"Yeah, that's who I am!" Sasami said eagerly. She heard soft footsteps coming from the stairway. A woman wearing a beautiful purple and white dress descended from the stairs. Sasami quickly walked over and grabbed a hold of her hand as she neared. "And this is my big sister, Princess Ayeka!"

"Uh… P-princess Ayeka?"

"Yes?" Ayeka replied.

A very confused Mitsuki looked back at Kiyone. "Um, why are two princesses of Jurai… why are they here on Terra?"

"That's a question for me to answer," Ayeka said. "We're here on a vacation from Jurai, and Lord Tenchi here was gracious enough to accept our presence. Oh, and please refer to this planet as Earth, not Terra. The name that was used by this planet's inhabitants two thousand years ago is no longer in use, it seems."

"Oh, uh… sure thing, Princess Ayeka." Mitsuki stammered. Sighing, she knelt and bowed to both princesses. "Oh, please forgive me for acting like an idiot! It's… it's just such a great honor to actually meet someone from the Royal Family!"

"Huh, what do you mean?" Tenchi asked. "Is it a big deal?"

Mitsuki looked at Tenchi with a sense that he had just spoken blasphemy. "What, they never told you? On Jurai, the Royal Family is very, very secretive. I mean, most people have no idea what the Emperor looks like, myself included! And here I am just walking into their vacation retreat like I'm supposed to the guest of honor!" Mitsuki said.

"Please, never mind our status as princesses. That's what we are taking a vacation from." Ayeka said, reaching out her hand toward Mitsuki. "That said, I would very much appreciate you joining us for breakfast, miss…"

"Oh, sorry! My name is Mitsuki Tsukushi, but just call me Mitsuki… I mean, it's up to you, not me!" She interrupted herself, panicking slightly. "Please, don't think I'm trying to tell you what to do, because I'm not, I'm -"

Kiyone walked in front of Mitsuki and lightly slapped her across the face. "She already told you to relax, so start acting like Mitsuki Tsukushi again, will you?"

"Come on, don't tell you weren't surprised when you met two princesses in one day!" Mitsuki said.

"Not really, I already had my fill of princesses." Kiyone pointed to Mihoshi. "I guess I was desensitized to the idea of 'royal glamour'."

Sasami smiled. "Breakfast will be ready in just a few minutes." She led the group into the dining room. A few minutes later, Sasami came into the room with an assortment of dishes.

"I humbly receive!" They all recited together.

For Tenchi, the fact that such an unexpected event had happened today comforted him. Indeed, perhaps today wouldn't be so bad after all…"

And then Ryoko let herself into the dining room. Drowsy as she was from last night's hangover, she didn't make too much of a fuss over what she'd sit in relation to Tenchi. Seeing as how Ayeka and Kiyone were already sitting in between Tenchi, Ryoko shrugged and collapsed on the nearest available spot… right next to Mitsuki. She glanced over at the crimson-haired woman, who glanced back at her.

"Hey Mitsuki, pass me that bowl over there, will you?" Ryoko asked, pointing towards the bowl of rice that was just out of Ryoko's comfortable reach.

"Oh, sure thing, Ryoko," Mitsuki replied, casually handing the space pirate her food.

The two began eating like normal, while everyone else had stopped altogether, noticing that something very, very wrong had just happened. She found herself so flabbergasted by the situation that she, along with everyone else, couldn't say anything about it. She covered her face with her bowl of rice as she ate.

A few more seconds of tranquility passed before the space pirate and police officer put down their bowls and chopsticks and ran through the current situation in their heads, realizing, too, that something very, very wrong had just happened. Suddenly, they look back at each other, thoroughly examining each other's faces, before gasping and standing up as if they had been shocked by electricity.

"What..." Mitsuki started.

"the hell..." Ryoko continued.

"...are you doing here?!" They both yelled.

Mitsuki reached for her hip and drew her gun, aiming right at Ryoko; Ryoko jumped back and put her hands together, drawing a sword of orange energy and pointed it towards Mitsuki.

Kiyone sighed. "I'm guessing you two know each other?"

"Well, today's just getting weirder and weirder. First, I get the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to meet two princesses from the Royal Family, and now I find myself eating breakfast with my favorite space pirate!"

"Oh, you missed me that much?" Ryoko snarled back. "Fine by me, I'll make sure Kiyone brings you back to the Galaxy Police in a body bag!"

"Keep talking like that, Ryoko. It'll be funny to see the look on your face when I stomp you into the ground, just like how I did on Uchikon-7. Remember that?"

"Oh, you're done f-"

"Please, let's not do this!" Tenchi yelled out, standing up. "I don't know why you two feel the need to tear each other limb from limb on sight, and I don't really want to know either, but please. I'd appreciate it if you didn't try to ruin my day before it begins!"

Mitsuki and Ryoko looked at Kiyone, who was still busying herself with her bowl of rice. She eventually stopped, but unexpectedly looked over at Tenchi. "You know, Tenchi, the reason _is_ pretty obvious when you remember that Ryoko is a space pirate."

"And you didn't tell our guest here ahead of time about her being here?" He asked.

Kiyone shrugged. "I just recovered from a coma, believe it or not. I wasn't too alert when Mihoshi invited Mitsuki to Earth."

Mihoshi stood up, flabbergasted. "You're not blaming me for this, are you, Kiyone?"

"Yes."

Tenchi shook his head. "Whatever's going on here, I just don't want it to happen inside my house! If you need to fight, do it…" Tenchi stopped himself. He sighed, knowing that he wasn't going to make things better by actually letting them fight it out. He shook his head and looked at Ryoko. "Hey, Ryoko, didn't you say a few days ago you wanted to go to Okayama, with me?"

"What? Oh, sure I did!" Ryoko replied enthusiastically.

"Well, how about we go to Okayama… right now?"

Ayeka gasped. "Absolutely not! Lord Tenchi, I can not allow you to be abducted by that vile woman and left to fend for yourself-" Mihoshi grabbed Ayeka and dunked her face into her bowl of rice, while Sasami gave a thumbs up to Ryoko and Tenchi."

Ryoko deactivated her light sword and teleported behind Tenchi, firmly grabbed him by the waist and completely surrendering herself to his offer. She looked over at the others. "Don't worry, we won't be away for _too _long!" They rose into the air before fizzling into thin air.

Kiyone nodded as she again busied herself with her bowl of rice.

"So, Kiyo, do you mind explaining to me why you've let a Space Pirate just… this is so ridiculous I can't even put it into words! What. Were. You. Thinking!?" She asked furiously.

Kiyone bumped Mihoshi with her shoulder, telling her to answer herself.

"Oh, um. Well, you see, two years ago, we were patrolling the Halcyon system which we were assigned to when we suddenly detected Ryo-Ohki speeding by on the Yagami's sensors. We caught up to her and we scored several hits, forcing her to land on Earth, the nearest inhabited planet."

"Okay. So why is she still here?" Mitsuki pressed. "You chased Space Pirate Ryoko to Earth to _capture _her, didn't you?"

"Um, technically, yes. But, we landed on Earth and tried to capture her ourselves… but, you know, she's really, really strong! We kinda gave up."

Kiyone bumped Mihoshi again.

"Okay, so I kinda gave up," Mihoshi corrected herself. "But Kiyone came up with a different idea. She noticed how Ryoko was staying at this house because she liked Tenchi, so Kiyone said: 'If we can't catch Ryoko, and if we can't call for reinforcements in time, we should just leave her on Earth. She's basically serving a life sentence if she stays here for the rest of her life.' That's exactly what Kiyone said." Sensing the frustration building up in Mitsuki, Mihoshi turned to Kiyone. "Now isn't that right, Kiyone?"

"Mhm, more or less." She answered, finishing off her bowl. "It wasn't perfect, but it was either that or letting her go free to continue her rampage across the Galaxy. Since we had just been assigned to this system, we could also keep an eye on Ryoko in case she started anything, which she hasn't so far."

"Does the Galaxy Police know about this?"

"They would've sent a task force here to kill her if they knew; and she probably would've just escaped with Ryo-Ohki, again," Kiyone said nonchalantly.

"I see," Mitsuki said.

A door nearby opened, and an old man wearing white robes let himself into the dining room. "Hello, is Tenchi around here? I've been waiting for him to begin our morning training…" He looked at the mysterious guest. "Oh, a new visitor from outer space? Welcome to Earth. My name is Katsuhito. I serve as the priest the shrine that my grandson Tenchi helps with maintaining."

"Oh, you're his grandfather?" Mitsuki repeated. "Well, I'm sorry, but I kinda participated in a confrontation that led to Tenchi choosing to teleported himself and Ryoko to Okayama for the day.."

"Oh, I see." Katsuhito mused. "Well, since you seem willing to apologize for what you did, perhaps you can accompany me to my shrine for today? I would appreciate the help."

Mitsuki looked over to the other again for clarity. Kiyone, Mihoshi, and Sasami all gave her a thumbs up.

Ayeka, having finally picked out the last grain of rice stuck in her hair, cleared her throat. "Certainly it's the least that you could do, miss Tsukushi."

Mitsuki smiled, trying to make the most of the situation. "Shrine?" She repeated, looking back at Katsuhito. "Sure, what's it for?"

"Shinto: the worship of Kami which inhabits and exists as everything around us. If you'd like, I can tell you more about it at the shrine."

Sighing, Mitsuki slowly nodded and followed Katsuhito out of the house.

Kiyone nodded again, washing down her breakfast with a cup of tea. She looked over at Sasami. "Do you mind if I get seconds?"

* * *

Late afternoon came, and Kiyone was in the living room resting on a couch and watching television. She had been casually listening to an international news station's broadcast, mentioning something about the funeral for a beloved princess from someplace called "Wales", a man biting another man's ear during a combat sport, and a short segment about the success of the "Mars Pathfinder" mission recently executed by another Earth country. Only the last piece of news interested Kiyone; to her, it was satisfying to know that this planet might yet have a future for itself in the wider galaxy.

As the programming entered a commercial break, Kiyone heard the front door swing open. "Ugh, I'm home." Tenchi groaned out as he entered the house.

Kiyone muted the television and looked over at Tenchi, who had a bad sunburn on his face and neck and looked like he was ready to collapse at any moment. Kiyone reluctantly got up off the couch and let him rest lay down. "What happened to you?" She asked.

"Clothes, sake, street brawls… more sake... where do I start?" Tenchi said, falling into the nearest chair. "At least it's over." Tenchi stood sat up and looked around the living room. "Say, where's your friend Mitsuki?"

Kiyone looked over at the closet door under the stairs next to the front door. "She agreed to help finish the work that was you left at the shrine for your grandfather, and later I overheard Washu begging her to step into her office for a 'tour'. That was over two hours ago, though."

"Two hours?" Tenchi repeated. A look of worry sprouted onto his face. "Oh no. Please Kiyone, you need to check to make sure Washu isn't going nuts in her laboratory."

* * *

The fact that the infamous mad-scientist Washu was, in fact, a little girl didn't strike Mitsuki's mind as being too odd compared to what else was going on at the moment. After being begged by Washu to come into her pocket dimensional laboratory, she had been distracted by the curious objects all over her laboratory that she didn't realize she had walked right onto a levitation pad. Softly snickering, Washu turned it on at the exact moment she walked over the pad and caught the Galaxy Police officer perpetually suspended in the air.

"Oh no!" Washu cried out. "I should've warned you sooner, but you seem to have walked over one of my trinkets." She walked over the device and took a very quick, very unconvincing look at it. "Well, it looks like it's running on a timed sequence, so it probably won't turn off for another hour or so. Well, in the meantime, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to collect some useful information from you. All for a good purpose, of course."

"Can't you just turn the power off?" Mitsuki asked instinctively. "I hear that's always a good troubleshooter."

"Oh, I wish, but this invention is powered by an internal miniature hydrogen reactor made by yours truly. I can't just turn it off like a switch."

Given the very special circumstances through which all of this had happened, it was obvious to Mitsuki that Washu was lying, but there wasn't much she could do about it. She would just have to wait for the little scientist to satisfy her curiosity. "So, what kind of tests did you have in mind." She asked.

That was over two hours ago. Evidently, Washu took her time with these things, although surprisingly she hadn't done anything too out of the ordinary to Mitsuki. So far, she had just rolled up the sleeves of her uniform and inserted several wires into her bloodstream that gave Washu plenty of information to look at.

Now, Mitsuki herself was getting bored. "I don't mean to say anything about you being a scientist… I mean, it's a pretty cool profession and all… but why does this have to be so boring?" She asked.

Washu, who had been preoccupied with looking over her latest strand of data on a handheld console, looked up at her subject. She smiled at her. "When I first enrolled in the Galaxy Science Academy, my father told me that the first ninety-nine percent of the scientific process is boring, but that last percent- where some discovery or breakthrough is actually made, makes that boring part worthwhile. Obviously, I didn't believe him at first, but I slowly grew to accept it as fact."

"Okay, so what's going to be so exciting that will make up for all of this?" Mitsuki asked.

"Well, where do I start?" Washu asked herself. "Alright, for the past year or so, one of my projects has been related to synthetic bio-mechanical technology, which in normal terms can be summed up as the potential combinations of organisms and technology. I was researching this at the Academy until I was expelled for unrelated reasons. Ever since I moved my laboratory here, though, I've had plenty of time to figure out the ins-and-outs of what I want to create. I want to create the Galaxy's very first fully-functional and autonomous synthetic organism!"

Mitsuki looked at Washu uneasily. "Okay… so you want to create a robot? We already have plenty of those."

"No!" Washu shot back. "Robots are machines that can at best attempt to mimic human mannerisms. No matter how advanced their central processing unit is or how complicated their 'unassisted learning' features are, the will always lack what makes people… well, people! They lack free will in their actions, they lack emotions, they lack self-preservation, they cannot think like you or me; to consider them to be people is ridiculous! I want to create something more than a heap of metal and processors. Through combining traditional cybernetic technologies and specially generated biological matter, I want to create a real person, someone _with _free-will, _with _emotions, _with _self-preservation, something… something with a soul! This being will be the greatest, most perfect combination of flesh and machine, a being that's far greater than the sum of its parts!"

"I see," Mitsuki said, slowly nodding and trying her hardest to make sense of what Washu was saying. Unfortunately, Jurai City's public education system left much to be desired in subjects such as these. "So, how am I contributing to your research into your synthetic organism?"

Washu walked over to Mitsuki's right side. "Your physical attributes, obviously. Physically, you are a perfect specimen, particularly your height-to-weight ratio and your muscular structure." She poked Mitsuki in the abdomen before putting her hand on Mitsuki's cheek. "Additionally, your face is neat and symmetrical, and your eyes are especially charming. You must be a real man-eater at the Galaxy Police, right?"

"Eh, on occasion," Mitsuki said nonchalantly. "Still, I don't see what this has to do with me specifically."

"You haven't figured it out?" Washu pointed at Mitsuki. "I'm going to be modeling my synthetic organism off of you, miss Tsukushi."

"You're kidding," Mitsuki said in disbelief.

Washu shook her head. "Earlier I might've lied to you about the levitation pad, but I have no reason to lie about my research."

"Why does that sound familiar to me?" Mitsuki mumbled to herself.

"If it makes you feel any better," Washu continued. "I'll let you have the honor of naming it."

Mitsuki nodded. If there wasn't any getting out of this situation, she might make herself enjoy it slightly until it's over. "How about… Yuuko? That used to be my nickname on Jurai City, even my parents started calling me that!"

Washu excitedly clasped her hands together. "Alright then. When I'm finished, I'll make sure everybody remembers Yuuko, the name of the single greatest breakthrough in synthetic biomechanical technology in history!"

Mitsuki smiled uncomfortably. "Yeah, that sounds great. Now, could you try to hurry up and let me go already? Haven't you finished all your tests yet?"

Washu looked down for a moment, humming quietly. "Well, I've done all the tests I needed, but I still need one more thing from you. You see, in order to generate the organic matter for our Yuuko, then I'll need a sample of your reproductive cells. Without that, I can't grow any organic matter and poor Yuuko would just be a hunk of metal and electronics."

Mitsuki's eyes were wide open when Washu answered. "I hope you don't mean my… my…"

"Your eggs? Of course, silly! What else do you grow children with?" Washu asked rhetorically. She turned around and walked over to a mess of instruments sprawled on a long table." Now, if I can just find that thing I built a little while ago. I know I put it around here somewhere." Soon, she found what she was looking for. The contraption was a lot simpler than what Mitsuki was expecting, but that might've made her more worried about the outcome. It was a small, vase-shaped container that was filled with water; connected to it was a rubbery tube that narrowed into a tip, and on the top of the vase was a single button that probably turned it on and off.

Mitsuki didn't need to be an expert on medical equipment to infer that what Washu was holding wasn't exactly proper for this type of procedure. "Uh... come to think of it, does it have to come from me? Can't you just take a sample from yourself?" She said.

"Oh, where's the fun in that? Don't worry, miss Tsukushi, just close your eyes and I promise you won't feel a thing! It'll only take around thirty seconds at most."

"The time doesn't really concern me, the fact that you're sticking that thing in me is what's worrying me. Besides, isn't this the first time you're using it? How do you know it will be painless?" Mitsuki asked.

"I am a genius! I built this thing! It _will_ work exactly as I designed it!" Washu declared, lightly smacking her hand on top of the contraption.

As Washu began to walk back over to her, Mitsuki took a deep breath and accepted her fate. "Fine, just… as long as nobody knows, I guess I'll live this down."

Washu was about to reach for her subject's pants, but Kiyone casually walked through the door and looked around the laboratory. "Hey, Washu, is Mitsuki still… here?" Kiyone stopped as she found her new partner at the mercy of the local mad scientist.

Mitsuki looked over at the intruder and instantly felt like one of the kami she had just learned about had possessed her and forced all the blood out of her face. "Kiyone." She began calmly, referring to her partner by her full name. "Why didn't you warn me about this woman before she dragged me into her lab?"

"You didn't ask."

"That's beside the point!" She yelled angrily. "This nut was about to... she was going to…" Mitsuki couldn't stomach to describe the horrible things Washu was about to do to her.

Wash glanced at the suspicious contraption she was still holding and quickly threw it away. "It's not what it looks like!" Washu protested as she looked at Kiyone. Try as she might, Kiyone looked at her with a blank stare that made her realize that she wasn't fooling anyone. "Oh, well, maybe it is… but I couldn't just throw away such a perfect opportunity to collect biological samples. If anything, it's your fault that you're never around; I could've just asked you to volunteer instead!"

Kiyone crossed her arms. "And Tenchi wonders why I decided to live in Okayama." She looked over at Mitsuki. She walked over to the spot where Mitsuki was stuck in mid-air and looked down at the pad. She noted the very small red button that wouldn't have been noticeable if nobody already knew where it was. Kiyone pressed it, and Mitsuki instantly collapsed to the ground.

"Ouch. I would've appreciated a catch, you know."

Kiyone let Mitsuki pick herself up off the ground. "I'm supposed to be the injured one here, you know." She replied. Both women were about to walk out of Washu's laboratory when the scientist ran in front of them, blocking the exit.

"Hey! I'm not finished with her!" Washu yelled. Unfortunately, there wasn't much she could do to keep Kiyone from rescuing her partner that didn't involve de-atomizing her or making Tenchi angry, and so Kiyone and Mitsuki simply walked around her and back into the Masaki residence.

* * *

"Since we have a guest here tonight, I thought it would be nice to try something different," Sasami announced happily at dinner. "Tonight's specialty comes from Hiroshima with Kurobuta pork and Tonkotsu soup. I hope you like it!"

After a hectic day in Okayama, Tenchi Masaki was glad that he came home to enjoy some comfort food. However, Tenchi eventually got over that ordeal after a few mouthfuls of Tonkotsu and become extremely worried about his current situation. The two prerequisite conditions for a repeat of the last major dinner ordeal were present: Tenchi was sitting in between Ryoko and Ayeka, and Ryoko had access to sake, which meant that she was eventually going to try and smooch up to him in her drunken lust, to which Ayeka would disapprove and things would spiral out of control from there. Kiyone was also here, but he felt that more likely than not Kiyone didn't feel like bailing him out again.

From then on, Tenchi ate dinner straight and stiff as a board and quiet as a mouse, anticipating with dread the spark that would eventually come to ruin the evening…

And waited…

And waited a little more, however, he had realized that he had just finished off the last of his Tonkotsu a little earlier than everyone else. He looked around and noted that incredibly, nothing happened. Mihoshi, Kiyone and the guest Mitsuki were talking about their good old days that the Galaxy Police Academy, while his father Nobuyuki, who had left early for work that morning, and grandfather were discussing Japanese politics that were beyond anyone's comprehension, and most importantly, Ryoko was sleeping head-first on the table while Ayeka and the rest quietly ate.

Somehow, Tenchi Masaki, a normal 17-year-old teenager quietly living in the mountains outside Okayama, Japan, had once again managed to survive in the face of overwhelming odds. He breathed a sigh of relief but felt that it would be wise to leave before he unknowingly accumulated any bad karma for the future.

"Well, I thank you for the food Sasami." He said, standing and bowing to Sasami. "I'll be outside."

* * *

The childhood dream of architect Nobuyuki Masaki, the Masaki residence had its fair share of quirks. For instance, the tiled roof was easily accessible by climbing from one of the open balconies connected to some of the bedrooms on the second floor. After excusing himself from dinner, Tenchi had climbed through Ayeka's room to get a good view of the night sky above from the roof.

He heard somebody walk onto Ayeka's balcony, he sat up and saw Kiyone balancing herself on the flat, wooden hand railing, and trying to pull herself up by her arms. "Oh, it's you." He noticed that she was struggling to get up, probably due to the injury that she had mentioned earlier. "Need help?"

Kiyone nodded and reached out for his hand, letting him pull her onto the roof. "Thanks, my injuries haven't recovered completely yet. So, what are you doing up here?"

Tenchi looked up at the clear sky, admiring the full moon that was out tonight. "I just wanted to be somewhere quiet. What about you?"

"Same here. I can only take so much of Mihoshi, and now I have an old classmate who's going to be working with me for the foreseeable future." Kiyone sighed. "I'm not sure how I'm going to deal with both of them."

"Speaking of which, I was going to ask eventually: you said you came back to pack up your things, what's going on with that?"

"Me, Mihoshi, and Mitsuki, the three of us are getting transferred into a new special operations unit in the Galaxy Police. From here on, all of us are going to be very busy."

"How busy?"

"Once we return to Headquarters, we're probably not going to have the opportunity to return to Earth for some time, years probably," Kiyone said. "Not that I have any reason to come back here in the first place, no offense."

"None took," Tenchi said. " I mean, it's obvious you never liked it here. From your point of view, Earth must be pretty boring compared to out there, right?"

"No," Kiyone said. "By my standards, this planet isn't _that _boring. The problem is that this system is too quiet. No one here is sophisticated enough to cause trouble, and barely anyone bothers to visit this system. Promotions in the Galaxy Police are given out according to merit, but being stationed on Earth didn't do much for my record."

"That makes sense," Tenchi said. "Say, if you're going to be gone for… for a long time, I'd like to ask you about your own life. I mean, you've read all there is to know about me, but you never really talked about yourself."

Kiyone shrugged. "I was born on a planet called Renoir, a planet far away from Earth, and from Jurai. I grew up in a city called Chambrae."

"What's it like?" Tenchi asked.

"It's been a long time since I've been there. All I remember is that the nights are as hot as day and that every alley and every street is packed with families just trying to get by. The scenery is beautiful, though, enough to give any Earth city a run for their money; it almost made people forget how meager their lives were in comparison."

Tenchi nodded. "What about your family? Your parents? Do you talk to them?"

Kiyone put a hand behind her head. "I… I don't talk to them. No, that's not it. The truth is, I don't know them at all."

Tenchi jumped up from those words. "Do you mean you were an orphan?"

"Not originally. I do remember having a home and parents when I was very young, but then one day I found myself waking up on the street to neither of them. It's been so long since I last saw my parents, I don't even remember what they looked like."

"Man, that's... that's sad to hear. I know I felt sad when my grandmother Achika died, but I could never imagine just losing everyone else in my family. I bet it was tough having to fend for yourself like that." Tenchi said.

"It was at times, but I wasn't hopeless. I already knew how to read and write from my parents, and I was educated by a local charity group that held classes for kids like me. Whenever I wasn't learning, I was running through the streets with the rest of the kids I knew, scraping by and making just enough money to pretend we were the richest kids in Chambrae." Kiyone smiled. "Looking back as a Galaxy Police officer, I'm not exactly proud of some of the things I did, but it was… it was fun at times."

Tenchi smiled and looked back up at the stars. "So, how did you ever join the Galaxy Police? You seemed pretty content staying where you were."

"It wasn't a very complicated ordeal like you'd expect. One day, I learned that some organization called the Galaxy Police were sweeping the city and looking for recruits. One of their agents found me, fed me the best food I had in my life up to that point, and asked if I wanted to join the Galaxy Police. After a few days of processing, I found myself sleeping in a dormitory at the Galaxy Police Academy." Kiyone looked back at Tenchi, catching his attention.

"This all happened just when I was fourteen, mind you." She continued. "The past ten years of my life have been devoted to the Galaxy Police. It's my home just as much as Chambrae was, just without the heat."

"Well, I'm glad that things worked out for you. Not everyone is that fortunate." Tenchi said.

Kiyone looked back at the sky and laid back onto the roof. "What do you plan on doing with your life?"

Tenchi stopped his chuckling and looked at Kiyone uneasily. He laid back onto the roof tiles himself and looked up. "My grandfather is training me to take care of the shrine and become his successor. You already know that."

"That's all? Just priesthood for the rest of your life?" Kiyone asked suspiciously.

"Oh, you make it out like it's a bad thing! It's not. You know, I might complain from time to time about how boring it can be around here, but let me tell you, I am _not _a city person. I'll take quiet meditation over noisy buses and trains any day of the week, so priesthood isn't so bad for me."

Kiyone turned her head and looked at Tenchi again. "I don't believe that. I think you're just making an excuse for your grandfather to make you into what _he _wants."

Tenchi gulped uncomfortably. He racked his head a response. "Well, even if I don't have much say in the matter, there's not much I can do about it. I mean, everyone else is perfectly fine the way things are going right now, so I should be too. Things aren't perfect around here, true, but this is my home… our home."

Kiyone scoffed. "I imagine I would've said the same thing when I still lived in Chambrae. Thinking about it now, that's the real reason I never liked it here; living in Okayama reminded me of how I felt so lacking in purpose before my life in the Galaxy Police."

"You felt like you were lacking something?" Tenchi asked.

"I lied earlier. I wasn't approached by a Galaxy Police Agent, I was the one who approached him. Even back then, I was yearning for something more out of my life than being a petty thief, so as soon as I saw an agent for the Galaxy Police wandering about, I was the one to approach him. I didn't even give him to ask if I was sure, I told him that I absolutely wanted to join the Galaxy Police."

Tenchi nodded and looked back at the house. From where they were, they could see the living room nearby where everyone had moved to. He groaned when he saw that Ryoko and the guest seemed to be at it again.

* * *

"Hey, I really don't… I still don't like the way you look at me!" A drunken Ryoko slurred out to Mitsuki.

Mitsuki sidestepped Ryoko's hopelessly slow punch and grabbed her arm and shoulder. In a swift, smooth motion, she used the space pirate's momentum to lift her into the air and slam her onto the floor behind her; a classic Galaxy Police neutralization technique.

"Ow." Ryoko groned.

"Don't push my buttons, Ryoko," Mitsuki said before looking outside. She gave a thumbs up once she saw Kiyone looking on from the roof, being unsurprised at what happened.

* * *

Kiyone looked back at Tenchi and pointed towards the living room. "This is what's you're going to be dealing with if you force yourself to accept the status quo. Come on, you don't want to live mountains as a priest and the target of princesses and space pirates for the rest of your life, do you? You're just like me, you don't have a vision for your future, but you're still yearning for something more out of my life."

"But… but what am I supposed to do? I just... I don't want to hurt Ayeka or Ryoko that way."

"I'll just say this: it's up to you to decide how to live your life, not Ayeka, not Ryoko, not even your father or grandfather. If you ever feel like you are at a loss for what to do, let your heart show which path to go down. It's what I did."

"My heart?" Tenchi repeated.

Kiyone nodded. She looked up at the sky. During their conversation, the moon and stars had become covered up by clouds, and it made seeing anything much harder. "Well, I should get some sleep. I have a new life to look forward to tomorrow."

"Alright," Tenchi said. "And… thank you, Kiyone."

* * *

Morning came again. Kiyone and Mihoshi spent the greater part of the day getting their errands out of the way: clearing out of their apartment, selling whatever they didn't need and donating the money to charity, and quitting their three jobs in managed to return to the Masaki residence just in time for dinner. Everyone was now crowded around the dining table that clearly wasn't up to the task.

By now, everyone had figured out that Kiyone and Mihoshi were leaving again, this time permanently, but none of them were up to the task of bringing up the subject, least of all Tenchi, who sat silently and stared down at the floor for most of the night.

When all the food and drinks had finally been exhausted, Kiyone was the one who broke the silence. She stood up and looked over at Mihoshi and Mitsuki, nodding towards them. They two stood up and followed Kiyone out the front door.

Tenchi stood up, not wanting things to end so unceremoniously. "Oh, wait up!" He said. Reluctantly, the others followed Tenchi too. They all gathered right at the outside of the house, where the three officers could address their hosts.

"Tenchi probably told you this already, but yes, Mihoshi and I are going to be going away, permanently. We only came back to tie up our loose ends on Earth." She addressed the group. She then looked at Tenchi's father. "Thank you, mister Nobuyuki, for having us as your guests so many times."

"Sure, but do you have to leave?" Nobuyuki asked. " I mean, you and Tenchi are still so young, you shouldn't put anything off until it's too-" A strike from Katsuhito's bokken on the head promptly stopped his son from going any further. "Sorry."

"You are welcome back to Earth at any time," Katsuhito said. "I'd appreciate the help with maintaining the shrine."

Mihoshi walked over and viciously shook Tenchi's hand, the sight of which sparked the ire of Ryoko and Ayeka. "I'm going to miss you, Tenchi! Now, don't let these two get to your head, they just have their own way of saying they like you!"

Mitsuki quickly grabbed Mihoshi and dragged her away from Tenchi. "Ryoko," Mitsuki said, looking over Mihoshi's shoulder at the Space Pirate one last time. "I'll be looking to settle our score someday, so don't do something stupid and get killed before then."

Ryoko scoffed. "Just get out of here already! Even looking at you makes me angry!"

Kiyone looked at Ayeka and Sasami. "I hope you two continue to enjoy your extended 'vacation' on Earth."

"Indeed. Jurai is simply too noisy for fair and beautiful princesses like us. Earth is much more to our liking. Isn't that right, Sasami." She asked her sister, who happily nodded in agreement. "If you find yourself having the honor of speaking with my father Azusa on Jurai, tell him that my answer is "absolutely not."

"Oh, Mitsuki!" Washu called out from the front door of the house. "You have my sincere gratitude for your enormous contribution to science!" From her lab coat, she pulled out a small vase connected with a thin tube; it was the same equipment that Washu almost used on the Detective-Sergeant the day before.

"I don't remember saying that you use… that!" Mitsuki said, pointing towards Washu's contraption.

"Of course not, you were fast asleep! Didn't I tell you it would be painless?" Washu said giggling.

Instinctively and horrified, Mitsuki placed a hand over her lower abdomen. She ground her teeth and looked at the scientist with a mix of hatred and disgust. This time, Mihoshi grabbed Mitsuki and held her back, directing her toward the Yagami.

Kiyone bowed to Tenchi's family one last time. "Thank you again for your hospitality. Farewell."

Kiyone found herself dragging her feet as she approached the Yagami, and let her partners board the first. On instinct, she stopped in place and turned around to see Tenchi, looking at her from the edge of the treeline. He said nothing, but raised a hand and casually waved to her.

Kiyone smiled, and slowly waved back to Tenchi. She said before walking under the Yagami's beam.

Inside the cockpit, the mushroom-shaped A.I. Assistant known as Yagami came out in an instant once Mitsuki and Mihoshi walked in. "Back to headquarters?"

"Yes, mushroom," Mitsuki said. "Do you have to ask?"

"If I was programmed with feelings, I would've been hurt by that, Detective-Sergeant Tsukushi." It responded. "Launching in one minute."

Mitsuki sat in a seat in the back of the cockpit. Mihoshi walked behind her and put a hand on her shoulder. "So, Mitsuki, what did you think of Earth?"

"Hm, where do I start?" Mitsuki started, scratching her chin. "Well, the religion is interesting, the scenery was nice, the food was suspiciously familiar, and I somehow got talked into becoming the future mother of an android... a synthetic organism, excuse me. Overall, I'd rate my visit a seven out of ten…"

* * *

**PREVIEW OF**

**NEXT PROGRAM**

Mitsuki: "I have to say, from going to get a bite to eat to getting pressed into a special unit by my boss's boss isn't really what I expected, but maybe this is a sign that Lady Tsunami has finally acted on our suffering. What do you think, Kiyo?"

Kiyone: "I've never been religious. Even if I was, I'd wonder why Tsunami would wait until now to give me some good fortune."

Mitsuki: "So surviving a bomb explosion with just a few nicks and scratches doesn't count as Tsunami's divine intervention?"

Kiyone: "That's Mihoshi's luck, you said that yourself. Now, if you'd like, you can pray for the both of us; we'll need it if we're going to be going incognito and investigating Ashigaru Corporation.

Mitsuki: Getting the scoop on the Galaxy's largest armaments manufacturer? SIFO is off to a great start! Sure, I'll pray all day and night to see whether or not you two get blown to bits! **The next episode of **_**Tenchi Muyo: Miho-Kiyo Complex: **_

** Proudly Made in the Juraian Empire!**

"It's unquestionably a profitable venture!"

* * *

**Author's Note #3: Mitsuki Tsukushi**

With the third episode of _Miho-Kiyo Complex_ hot off the press, I'd like to take a second to clarify a few details regarding our new heroine with the easy smile and good fashion sense, Mitsuki.

For those who watched _Tenchi Universe_, you may recognize Mitsuki as a _very_ minor character that first appeared in episode 15: "No Need for Escape!" as well as a brief cameo in episode 26: "No Need for a Conclusion!" So technically, Mitsuki is not an original character.

Why is she of all people here? Well, as you know from reading the first author's note, I was inspired to create _Miho-Kiyo Complex _after watching the first 26-episode season of _Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex_. One of the main characters of that show and the rest of the franchise for that matter is Batou, one of Major Kusanagi's partners in Public Security Section 9 and a real blast to have around. His humor and easy-going attitude is a foil to Kusanagi's seriousness, and he's strong enough to kick serious cybernetic ass when the time calls for it.

Likewise in Tenchi Muyo, Kiyone mostly fills the role of the Major, as she too is serious and straight-laced while on the job. However, Kiyone's foil is Mihoshi, who is not so witty and easy-going as she is innocent and oblivious. I knew I wanted a character like Batou in _Miho-Kiyo Complex_, but since Mihoshi is so uniquely and perfectly "Mihoshi", I turned to the next best thing, Mitsuki.

Now, I had also thought about including Amane Kaunaq from Tenchi Muyo! GXP as the third amigo since more people would recognize her, but I realized that while she could theoretically fit the same purpose as Mitsuki, Amane's personality is centered around her relationship with Seina Yamada (who will definitely not make an appearance in _Miho-Kiyo Complex)_; she simply had no existing chemistry with either Kiyone or Mihoshi.

Surprisingly, Mitsuki's lack of screen time makes her an easier character to write compared to Kiyone or Mihoshi because I don't have to abide by any precedents that would be found with writing either of those two. Now, when it comes to a character being "in character" or "out of character", I have to ask: does that rule apply to characters who are not characterized well? My answer is no. The only two things that we learned about Mitsuki from her brief appearance in _Tenchi Universe _is that she is someone who is:

1\. Very proud of her accomplishments and is self-centered to the point of annoying other people, possibly unintentionally. And...

2\. Is friends, or at least associates with Kiyone (and perhaps Mihoshi) from her being in the same graduating class at the Galaxy Police.

It's honestly not much to go on, so am I really wrong to "expand" her character in a manner that would make sense based on what we already know about her and what I want out of her character? Is Mitsuki Tsukushi an original character-lite? You can answer those questions for yourself, but I personally won't lose sleep over it.

In any case, if you're willing to take the time to ponder that question, then I insist that you favorite; review; tell your friends, fellow fanfiction connoisseurs, and Tenchi Muyo fans about this series. Stay in touch for the next episode, which will come out in the *near* future.

Oh, I almost forgot to mention this, but I've completely given up on adhering to both my 12K word limit and well as a time limit for publishing new chapters. From now on, I will adhere to the principle of: "It will be finished when it's finished!"


	4. Proudly Made in the Juraian Empire!

The door didn't open automatically. A direct authorization code given to the door's keypad didn't do the trick either.

She noticed the door was slightly ajar, just enough to put her fingers through. Taking a deep breath, she grabbed the door and summoned all her strength to pull the door toward her. It held still for a moment, but it gave way and opened with a violent grinding sound coupled with Mitsuki practically yelling from the strain on her fingers.

She was aware of the noise she made and quickly looked behind her, and sure enough, a blonde, blue-eyed cadet was giving her a strange look, like he was witnessing a mugging. When he met her eyes, he quickly walked away.

Mitsuki sighed, disappointed with herself.

Inside, she located and flipped the light switch to find what SIFO's base of operations had to offer. "Not much" would be an understatement.

A rush of anger and confusion nearly overwhelmed the unsuspecting detective-sergeant.

There wasn't much to comment on besides the room having that nostalgic scent of an untouched attic. The only other thing needing inspection were the walls.

Then she remembered something Airi had briefly mentioned about the room. It was originally meant to be a recreation and lunch room for the Intelligence Division, whose headquarters were right next door, but it never found any real use.

Mitsuki ran a finger down one of them and was reminded of that one time she had spilled an open bag of flour on the floor of her home as a child, though she knew using this sort of _flour_ in any recipe would send someone to the hospital.

She sighed. "This just won't do."

She walked back into the hallway and approached the nearest wall-mounted communicator. She glanced over the keypad legend before holding down a button to place a call.

"Hello? This is Detective-Sergeant Tsukushi calling the janitorial corps. Can you deliver a set of cleaning equipment down to room 1137-7A?"

"You mean to say you want a team sent over there?" The person on the other side asked.

She grunted audibly. "No, I meant what I said! Send over the equipment!"

She hung up. A minute later, a man was rushing a cart of cleaning materials down the hall towards her. He approached the woman and parked the cart right next to her.

"Here's what you asked for," He announced. " All the implements you could ever want for cleaning an empty room… all by yourself."

He peeked into the filthy room next to them and couldn't help but ask a question.

"So, is there any reason you want to do this yourself?" He asked. "I mean, doesn't a Detective-Sergeant have anything better to…"

Mitsuki stared at the man as if he had asked what color red is. It was a question so pointless and undeserving of her mental capacity that she didn't give the man an answer.

"Fine, keep your secrets," He said and began walking back the way he came. "Just make sure you send it back to room 1221-7A when you're done…"

* * *

**Episode Four**

**Proudly Made in the Juraian Empire!**

It was a week after SIFO was officially formed, and things were disappointingly slow. The only serious action that the three-member unit has had so far was to move some odd pieces of furniture into their empty headquarters after it had been "mysteriously" cleaned of any dust.

Kagato had not made an appearance since his takeover of the Juraian National Assembly, so the task of tracking him down would not come easily.

Mihoshi slept on the couch in the middle of the room, while the wide-awake Kiyone busied herself with coming up for a lead in the Kagato case.

Occupying her attention was the paper-copy of Lieutenant Ryoji Ishizuka's report to the Superintendent on Operation: Hangyaku that she was holding. This would be a good place to start gathering information, Kiyone thought, since the Lieutenant was present at the operation.

Or so she thought. It turns out Ishizuka didn't know much more than she did about what happened, though she soon realized that it was a given since she, Mihoshi, and Mitsuki were the people that he had gotten his information from in the first place.

Frustrated at the realization, she sighed and carelessly tossed the report onto the small table in front of the couch.

The next moment, Mitsuki came in through the door with a bounce to her step. She looked happy that she didn't walk into an empty room.

"Yeah, I thought I might find you two here. Have you had lunch yet?"

Kiyone didn't even look up at her. "No."

"Tsk, tsk Kiyone! You have to eat something if you're going to be working so hard!" She pulled out a large white cup she was holding behind her back, proudly displaying it to Kiyone like a sport's trophy. "Look, I even made sure to get the spicy kind, your favorite!"

She tossed the cup to Kiyone, who caught it one-handed with her peripheral vision.

Faced with the high demand for low-cost, on-the-go lunch by officers, the Galaxy Police had long perfected the instant ramen cup. For just two Juraian Ryō, an officer could buy a large cup of ramen that didn't require any instructions besides pulling a small cord forward on the cup; that triggered a chemical reaction inside the cup that heated the noodles and broth almost instantaneously.

Kiyone looked at the cup's colorful label before taking a bite of the noodles, and sure enough, it was her favorite brand. "This certainly brings me back to the academy days. Tastes exactly how I remember it too."

Mitsuki nodded in approval and sat down on a chair opposite of Kiyone. "Well, what've you been up to?"

"My job. And hers," She glanced over at Mihoshi, still sleeping despite the smell of fresh ramen filling the room. "Kagato isn't going to be brought in if we're just sitting around here."

Mitsuki nodded and hummed in agreement. Kiyone knew it was sarcasm, of course.

"Sure, you're probably right on that, but let me fill you in on a secret," Mitsuki said. "Just because you feel you're busy and working hard doesn't mean that you're being productive!"

Kiyone was very annoyed by that remark. "Okay, Detective-Sergeant who-obviously-works-so-much-harder-than-me, what do you think I should do?" She propped her feet on the low table and drew her arms over her head, patiently waiting for an answer.

"Instead of giving ourselves busywork that won't go anywhere, I think we should just wait for Kagato to make his move, whatever it is. Then, we pick up the clues, get our guns ready, move in, and arrest him. Simple, don't you think?" Mitsuki asked. She smiled unconsciously, seeming very proud of her suggestion.

"Oh, another of your half-baked plans that 'just work', right?" Kiyone suggested.

Mitsuki folded her arms. "Kiyone, have you ever stopped to consider why I'm the detective-sergeant in this room, and not you?"

Kiyone could feel her blood simmering from that remark, so she stuffed her face with more ramen to keep herself from saying whatever snappy comment she wanted to say.

Mitsuki read Kiyone's body language and changed the subject. "Regardless, maybe what SIFO needs is more manpower. Me, you, and our sleeping princess; we're three women trying to do an entire police department's job!"

"Mhm. Not… a princess." Mihoshi mumbled in her sleep.

"Oh, excuse me, _Lady_ Mihoshi," Mitsuki said jokingly. Like Kiyone, she knew how Mihoshi could talk in a state of semi-consciousness.

"Oh, now that I'm thinking about our case, I just remembered something." Mitsuki continued. "I still have those bombs from the National Assembly stored inside my control cube. Here, I'll show you!"

"Wait, you're going to…" Kiyone started, but Mitsuki had already whipped out her cube and was twisting it like a machine.

"If I can just remember to twist C9 up twice and right three times, not five… here!" Mitsuki said as she worked. Then, two small, star-shaped bombs returned to their dimension of origin and fell onto the table.

Upon seeing the same shape that nearly killed her a few days ago, an incredible feeling of terror overwhelmed Kiyone's senses. Her reflexes kicked in and she suddenly jumped off the couch and darted towards the door, panting frantically while confusing Mitsuki. That full cup of ramen that Kiyone let go of collided with Mihoshi's head and the scalding broth instantly woke her with a loud, "Ahh! Hot, hot, hot!"

"Yikes!" Mitsuki said as she glanced at Mihoshi. She looked back at Kiyone. "Oh, wait Kiyone! It's okay!" Mitsuki grabbed hold of Kiyone's shoulders, stopping her just as the door opened. "Hey, calm down. It's okay, it's okay! It's not going to explode!"

"It's… it's not?" Kiyone asked raggedly.

"No, I eliminated the bomb's explosive components while it was in subspace. It's just an empty shell. Sorry, I guess I should've mentioned that." Mitsuki said innocently.

Meanwhile, Mihoshi stood up and groaned as she saw her uniform drenched in Kiyone's lunch. She looked over at Mitsuki and Kiyone, who both seemed to be too preoccupied to notice her.

"I knew I should've slept on the Yagami!" She said as she carefully stood up and wiped the excess noodles off her face. Try as she might, her uniform had been thoroughly drenched in broth and a few noodles were sticking out of her hair. "I'm getting a spare uniform, and a shower!" She darted out of the room without any notice.

Kiyone turned around and Mitsuki instantly put her hands up defensively, expecting a slap to the face. Instead, Kiyone just pushed past her and sat down again, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Next time… warn me," She said.

"Right," Mitsuki said, nodding.

A knock came on the door. Before either woman could respond, Airi Fujikawa let herself into the room.

"Did something happen to Mihoshi? She just ran past me and smelled good enough to eat. I'll assume it's not Seniwan pheromones."

"No, she had to get a change of clothes. My lunch collided with her hair." Kiyone admitted.

The Superintendent nodded. "How are things coming along?"

"Boring," Mitsuki said, sitting down in an empty chair. "We haven't got much in the way of a lead."

"A manpower shortage, right?"

"You… how did you know I said that?" Mitsuki asked, surprised.

"I just had a feeling that it would've been brought up by someone by now. And speaking of which, I'm happy to announce that SIFO is receiving another recruit."

"Who?" Mitsuki and Kiyone asked in sync.

Airi stepped out of the way and revealed a man much shorter than her, with dirty blonde and mostly uncombed hair, and with dull eyes that look like they could use another ten hours of sleep.

"After a good talk, Lieutenant Ryoji Ishizuka has agreed to lend his extensive knowledge in technology and information warfare to SIFO," Airi explained.

Ryoji scratched his head. "A promotion is a net positive for my career. Though, to be honest, I don't imagine my job will change much."

"Well, I'm sure you're going to be a fun a fun addition to our crew!" Mitsuki said sarcastically.

"I see you're itching to do something, Mitsuki. There's something I want you to look into in Jurai City. A man by the name of Hayao Madarame- he was a Republican Guard, and he was found murdered a few days ago. Go back down there, cooperate with JCPD, and ask as many questions as you need to. If there's any connection to Kagato, find it for us."

"Okay, Airi," Mitsuki said, saluting. She got up and made for the door, walking out of sight.

Airi nodded and looked back at Kiyone and Ryoji. "Now, onto today's business." She reached into the pocket of her uniform and pulled out her control cube.

A full-length gun painted with white with black lines running on the sides.

Ishizuka walked forward and picked up the gun. "This is one of the weapons that the JCPD recovered from Kagato's men during the hostage crisis. This is an XR-12 Directed Energy Weapon, manufactured by..."

Mitsuki, who could overhear what Ryoji was saying from the hallway, quickly rank back in and snatched the weapon from Ryoji's arms without warning. She looked at it with a childish curiosity as she aimed at the bare wall of the room.

"Oh, so these are the new Ashigaru models that I've been hearing about?" Mitsuki asked. "I've been aching to get my hands on one!"

She noticed there was a small knob brushing against her ring finger. "Oh, this thing has a power range, too? Neat!"

With a turn of the power range to maximum, the plasma cartridge visible from the top of the gun emitted an increasingly bright hue, and an ominous, high-pitched sound started coming from the weapon.

Ryoji was startled at Mitsuki's dangerous curiosity. "Wait! That gun still has a cartridge inside!"

"Oh, what do you take me for, a trigger-happy psycho?" Mitsuki countered, still pointing the gun at the wall.

The next moment, Mihoshi sprinted back into the room, returning from what had to have been an extremely quick shower, and wearing a clean uniform.

"Hey! I'm..."

That loud, sudden announcement from Mihoshi was the last thing that Mitsuki was prepared for. Startled, her reflexes kicked in, and she accidentally squeezed her finger against the gun's trigger. A bolt of superheated plasma shot out and tore through the wall, straight into the Intelligence Divison's command center.

After the initial panic of the discharge, the members of SIFO looked over the damage. Thankfully, no one appeared to have been vaporized, but Intelligence's Colonel Tetsuo Hakodate didn't look very happy having a hole being blown into his command room and especially having one of his computers being fried from the plasma.

"I just fixed that a few days ago," Ryoji said, irritated.

Kiyone stood up and snatched the XR-12 out of Mituski's hand and handed it back to Ishizuka, who immediately removed the plasma cartridge out of the top of the weapon.

"Um… was this a bad time?" Mihoshi asked, sounding rather guilty.

"No, but Mitsuki made it one," Kiyone answered.

Airi had to blink twice and then thrice at the absurdity of what just happened. After the third blink, she was looking at an angry Colonel Hakodate through the new hole in his control room.

"Oh, you know how it goes, Hakodate; things like this happen to the best of us! I'll make sure this is all fixed by tomorrow!" She waved at him innocently, but the Colonel didn't wasn't having it today.

"I think the Intelligence Division will be shifting its operations to its secondary room for today," he said. He saluted the Superintendent and waved for his subordinates to follow him out of the way of Mitsuki's new firing range.

"Of course. Whatever you think is best." Airi replied. She looked back at Mitsuki with scorn.

The detective-sergeant instinctively made for the door to escape the Superintendent's wrath.

"So about my mission… I'll be going to Jurai City now if you don't have anything else to say. I'm taking my ship, not Yagami... um, later!" And she could be heard sprinting down the hall as fast as she could.

Airi shook her head and looked back at Ryoji. "So, I think you were about to say something very important."

Ryoji cleared his throat. "As I was saying. This is an XR-12 directed energy blaster, manufactured by Ashigaru Corporation."

"Ashigaru," Kiyone repeated. "The Galaxy's largest manufacturer of weapons. Alright, I can guess where this conversation is going, so I want to be sure of something." Kiyone said. "These weapons that were recovered at the National Assembly, are we sure they aren't reproductions? There's plenty of those to buy on the black market."

Ryoji nodded. "I had this weapon sent to the Science Division to be examined on the microscopic level, and this morning they gave their results. In terms of its shape and assembly, this weapon is not made from any recycled components or material. It's fresh off the manufacturing line."

"Do the public know about this?" Kiyone asked.

"No. I called the JCPD and got permission to take all of them. They were very willing to let us handle this case all by ourselves."

Kiyone nodded. "So, what exactly do you want us to do?"

"Someone connected with Ashigaru Corporation somehow got these weapons delivered to Kagato. Find that connection, and we might uncover more information about Kagato."

"And Ashigaru Corporation? Are we planning on exposing them?"

Airi shook her head. "If we expose Ashigaru, they'll probably make an excuse for what happened. They won't get in trouble, and we'll walk away learning nothing."

Kiyone nodded in agreement. "I understand. We'll do what we can and report back anything we find."

"Of course you will." Airi turned around and walked toward the door. As it opened, she stopped and looked over her shoulder. "One thing I should mention: if you're going to make an arrest, notify the JCPD, okay? We don't want them thinking we kidnapped someone."

"Yes, Airi," Kiyone said, saluting the Superintendent. Ryoji and Mihoshi reluctantly joined in saluting.

"Very good." Airi looked at the clock on the wall and made for the door. "I'll leave you three to it then. Don't disappoint me."

As soon as Airi was out of sight, Mihoshi asked, "So… what are we supposed to do now?"

Both women turned to Lieutenant Ishizuka for the answer. Ryoji shifted the XR-12 weapon in his hands and looked inside the port for the plasma cartridge.

Without addressing them, he got up and went through the brand new e connecting SIFO's headquarters to the Intelligence Division, with Mihoshi and Kiyone following curiously. The Lieutenant sat down at one of the many computers and immediately started typing.

"Uh… what are you doing, Lieutenant?" Mihoshi asked.

Ryoji didn't respond. To the Detective First-Classes, it seemed as though he had become instantly engrossed with operating the computer. His typing speed seemed almost unnatural; and the man's eyes were constantly shifting to different points on the monitor.

Kiyone's patience with the Lieutenant grew thin and she moved right behind his ear. "Ishizuka!"

Ryoji snapped back into focus, remembering that he had to explain his findings to his partners.

"Yes, um… every weapon has a printed serial number. They're used as identification for things like quality control and anti-theft measures." He explained. "Ashigaru Corporation has multiple manufacturing facilities all across the Galaxy, but there's only one on Jurai; it's in an industrial park on the outskirts of Jurai City.

"Go on," Kiyone said.

He looked closer at the inside of the XR-12's cartridge port. "Let's see here. The Serial ID Number for this is 4565-10-1235. Is that the first part of an address?" He asked himself while typing. "Yes, it is!"

He stood up and walked over to the front end of the Intelligence room. The commanding console that was operated by Colonel Hakodate was his target, as it controlled communications from that room to the rest of Headquarters.

He operated the console with ease and was on the line with someone.

"Hello, Logistics Divisions? This is Lieutenant Ishizuka, from earlier. Those confiscated weapons from Jurai City that you received last week, can you check the serial numbers? Yes, do it right now. So, do they begin with the four-digit sequence 4565? Yes? They all begin with 4565? All of them? I see, thank you." And he promptly terminated the communication.

Kiyone was somewhat impressed by the "So you've confirmed that all these weapons came from a single factory in Jurai City? That's... useful."

"Very useful," Ryoji concurred, oblivious of Kiyone's sarcasm. "Now we know where to look."

* * *

Their destination turned out to be Ashigaru Corporation's Megafactory-One, located just outside Jurai City. As it was discovered the last time they were here, parking for such a large spaceship wasn't readily available near where the wanted to go, and walking was simply not an option.

Thankfully, the Galaxy Police Cruiser Yagami came prepared for such a predicament. In its cargo bay was a four-seat landspeeder that was guaranteed street legal on any planet in the Galaxy.

Ryoji Ishizuka was the reluctant driver, having lost a three-way rock-paper-scissors match over which untrained officer would give the vehicle it a shot. At least there weren't many other drivers on the road this far outside the city center.

The bustling cosmopolitan heart of the Juraian Empire seemed like a distant echo as they drove along the outskirts of the city. From here, there was a night and day difference between the city's dirty, congested residential units on one side, and the rolling, picturesque green hills on the other.

Kiyone had read about this stark contrast on their way planetside. The Juraian Royal Family prioritizes preserving Jurai's natural landscape, and in the areas it directly controls-which exclude Jurai City- most of the land is indeed undeveloped nature.

They found the one they were looking for soon enough. Ryoji slowed down right at the short path leading to the building in question's entrance. Unfortunately, he didn't notice the building until they had just passed it, and he stopped abruptly by stomping on the brakes. The three of them jerked chaotically from the surprise maneuver.

"Ah… sorry about that," Ryoji said, scratching his head. "Anyway, we're here. Megafactory-One."

Unbefitting of the name, Megafactory-One was wide, but only a couple stories tall.

Mihoshi looked perplexed. "Strange, you'd think it'd be… more?"

"It's probably an underground facility," Ryoji answered.

"How many employees are working there?" Kiyone asked.

With the small holographic-projector attached to his ear, Ryoji was typing away on his keyboard and finding the answer to Kiyone's question before she could finish speaking.

"One."

Kiyone and Mihoshi looked at him with bewilderment, refusing to believe that to be the case.

Ryoji said it again. "Just one employee is working at Megafactory-One; the factory manager, a man by the name of Hinawaju," Ryoji answered. "You'll speak to him."

"Okay, but what are we supposed to say to this manager that will get him talking, assuming he even had anything to do with this?" Kiyone asked.

Ryoji grunted in annoyance. "Whatever you Detective First-Classes would say in an interrogation; I don't know!"

The Lieutenant went silent for a moment as he stared at his virtual screen, regretting his tone. Then, he shifted in his seat and took out his control cube. He took out an earpiece similar to the one he was wearing and handed it to Kiyone.

"I have an idea," he said. "Put this in your ear. It's both a microphone and a speaker. I can listen in on your conversation, and I'll help you with what to say."

Kiyone fastened the gadget on her left ear. "In that case, why not just tell him yourself?" She asked.

"Well, with strangers, I'm not good at… I'd fumble too much in person." He admitted reluctantly. "You're two are more confident than I am. You're both taller, too."

"He does have a point there," Mihoshi said.

"Are you sure about this?" Kiyone asked.

Ryoji nodded. "Don't worry. What I'm planning, it'll work. I mean, if it doesn't, that would… that would be pretty bad, you know?"

"Uh, yeah. I see your point." Kiyone said hesitantly. She and Mihoshi hopped out of the landspeeder and made for the front doors of Megafactory-One.

No keypad or any security met them along the way inside, and the doors automatically opened for them. Inside, they were greeted with a room with blue-tinted white walls and a low ceiling. There were no chairs, no desks, and no secretaries. For a room designed to be a lobby, it was unsettling to see how empty it was.

They must have walked over an invisible sensor because a large robot suddenly sprouted out of the ceiling. It looked somewhat similar in shape to the Yagami's A.I. Assistant module, a robot shaped like an upside-down mushroom. It had one ominous red eyes that wasted no time in scanning over the two visitors.

Kiyone was familiar enough with Yagami to not be intimidated by this robot and stepped forwards to introduce themselves.

"Um… hello," Kiyone said to the machine. "We're from the Galaxy Police."

The robot did not respond, but its whole body shifted along with the ceiling and moved closer to Kiyone and Mihoshi.

Instinctively, Mihoshi backed away and hid behind Kiyone, holding onto her shoulders.

Kiyone's control cube had, among other things, a pen. She grabbed hold of the unsuspecting item and pressed the button on the end of it. A thin screen extended and unfurled to function as an electronic badge, displaying Kiyone's name, photo, and the Galaxy Police's official seal.

"We have sanction from Jurai's Royal Family to conduct an investigation here," Kiyone continued.

The robot focused its red eye on the item and moved even closer. It shot out web-shaped lasers at the virtual badge, and seeming satisfied, shifted itself toward the other officer.

"Mihoshi, your badge," Kiyone ordered.

Mihoshi reluctantly backed off of Kiyone and showed the robot her badge. Then, it quickly retreated into its hole in the ceiling.

Kiyone shrugged. "I guess we can keep going."

Inside the factory, they found that it was indeed missing something, people. This complex was designed to accommodate hundreds of workers with its wide hallways and numerous break rooms. The silence and emptiness were uncomfortable.

As expected, they found an elevator that took them underground. They then found themselves at the all-important assembly floor. They found layers upon layers of robotic arms moving in perfect unison. Pieces of metal and plastic were constantly being shifted around and combined into larger pieces. They could see weapons being sent into a room for testing. More arms quickly loaded plasma cartridges into groups of ten weapons at a time and made them discharge electronically before sending the approved ones on their way. They eventually reached the other end of the assembly floor, where presumably they were being assorted and being prepared for shipping to a storage area.

They walked past all the sparks and machinery and found a set of stairs that led to an officer with windows to overlook the entire operation. Through an unlocked door, they finally found something organic; a pair of two feet could be seen as they propped up on a table. They belong to a man who was leaning back on his office chair and watching a television broadcast. His "work" table was covered with empty bags of junk food, grease-stained newspapers, and a small picture frame of him and his family. It didn't take a Detective First-Class to figure that his work style wasn't necessarily productive.

"Working hard, I see," Kiyone said out loud.

"Huh?!" The man snapped over at the two women at the door of his office, obviously not expecting visitors.

"Oh uh… yeah, that's right," he answered. "A couple of years ago, Ashigaru Corporation was looking to cut costs, so they went and automated their entire manufacturing process, everything legal that is, thank Tsunami," He said, pointing to himself with his thumb. "So, uh… who are you anyway?"

"We're Galaxy Police, the one and only!" Mihoshi answered. "We just thought you could answer a few questions of ours."

"Like what?"

Mihoshi whipped out her control cube and brought out a genuine XR-12 rifle, the sight of which did not make an impression on the manager.

"Look, I agree that the power range on the XR-12 is an unnecessary hazard, but you'll want to bring it up with the guys at the Ashigaru Building downtown, not me," He said. "Anything else?"

Kiyone nodded. "A few of these were recovered from the National Assembly a week ago. And in case you were wondering, yes, they're genuine, and they were made at _this _factory!"

The man flared with anger.

"Now what are you trying to say, that I got blood on my hands? He asked. "I resent that! All I do here is make sure the machines are working and they meet the production quotas; nothing more, nothing less!"

Kiyone glanced at the name tag on the man's shirt. "Mister Hinawaju, please don't rush to conclusions. We're not going to accuse you of something ridiculous like that. As my partner said, we want answers. How someone like Kagato was able to procure legitimate Ashigaru products?"

"You might as well ask a fortune teller. I've already made it clear that I don't know anything! Now get out of here!" he ordered, stomping on the floor.

Just then, Kiyone heard a voice in her left ear. Lieutenant Ishizuka was speaking, not to her, but it was almost like Ishizuka himself was trying to talk with the factory manager. She blinked twice and realized what he had in mind.

"Mister Hinawaju, you must understand that we're not trying to frame you, but we're trying to protect you from this case."

"Huh? What kind of nonsense is that?

"Seijuro Asaka is trying to sell you out, frame you as the one who orchestrated this scheme. Treason against the state is a capital crime, you know."

"A-Asaka!? But I… I don't…. how…?" he stammered, "how do you know about Asaka?"

Kiyone blinked twice, listening in to what the voice in her head was saying.

"We'd know, especially since we're the officers that he sent to arrest you. He thinks Galaxy Police will arrest anyone for a price."

Another order came out, and Kiyone whipped out her specialized pen again. This time, instead of bringing up her badge as usual. It displayed audio signals and a man's voice.

"I can't risk Hinawaju being arrested by the JCPD and mentioning my involvement, so I want you two to arrest him and make sure he and he alone 'confesses' to the incident."

"And what are you offering us, again?" Kiyone's voice came out too.

Kiyone herself kept perfectly silent, and without looking she tightly squeezed Mihoshi's hand to keep her surprise under control.

"Five million Juraian Ryō. Enough for the both of you to retire on, I'd think." The man answered. "Of course, I'll be making the payments in increments to not stir any suspicion…"

The recording ended, and Kiyone put her pen away before addressing Hinawaju. "That was Seijuro Asaka, wasn't it?"

Hinawaju's face became pale, and he backed himself into the wall. "Uh… yeah. It's the President of Ashigaru all right. So, that bastard wants me to take the fall for him? I'll tell you everything you want."

Well, about two weeks ago, President Asaka paid me a visit. He brought a suitcase with him, 'my entire year's wage in one box', he said."

"He seems to like this trick," Kiyone commented.

Hinawaju smiled crookedly. "Guess so. Asaka wanted me to do him a favor. He wanted me to modify the machines to produce a few extra weapons with the daily quota, just a few extra XR-12's that wasn't ordered by the company. And last week, he visited again and he just took all of them. No money, though."

"Did he mention why he wanted these weapons in the first place?" Kiyone asked.

He shook his head. "All he said to me was that I'd get my money 'once things died down'. That's all he said to me, so I had no clue he meant that he was going to use them to shoot up the National Assembly!"

"Once things died down," Kiyone repeated. "So he lured you into a false sense of security."

Then she turned to Mihoshi. "We have everything we came here for. Mister Hinawaju,"

She said, glancing back at the man. "Thank you for cooperating with the Galaxy Police. The way I see it, you didn't receive from President Asaka, so you didn't technically commit bribery. I'd suggest you don't do anything that would risk your… 'demanding' job again, understand?"

"Definitely," Hinawaju answered.

Ryoji glanced at Kiyone and Mihoshi as they approached the landspeeder.

"That was an impressive thing you did the voice," Kiyone said as she hopped in.

"That's easier than you think. I just feed some voice clips of Seijuro Asaka into a voice synthesizer. I did it in a few minutes on the Yagami," Ryoji said. Seeing both of them inside, he started the vehicle and drove back the way they came.

Kiyone sighed. She tried bringing up the obvious, but Ryoji was too distracted by his niche talents. "Lieutenant, why didn't you tell us that the President of Ashigaru Corporation was the one behind the arms shipment?" She asked blankly.

"I wasn't that sure, Makibi. Going into this, I was only around sixty percent certain. Now I'm up to eighty-eight percent certain about him."

"Okay, so according to your mental calculator, what's our next move? Are we going to arrest Asaka?"

Ryoji shook his head rapidly. "Oh no, no. Not yet. We only have one chance to do this, you know. If we arrest an important person like Seijuro Asaka and it turns out he's innocent, then that'll be a big... very big problem! We must be absolutely certain that he's guilty."

"And how do we go about that?"

"We need to get close to him. Talk with him. Don't worry, I already have a plan for that, too."

"You have lots of plans, don't you?" Mihoshi asked.

"Only ones that work."

"I don't mean to discredit your … skills Lieutenant, but how did you begin to suspect that Seijuro Asaka of all people was behind this?" Kiyone asked. "It's a very serious accusation to make."

"Oh, that?" Ryoji asked, clearly not expecting that question. "I've been looking into the company's history for the past few years when I found something interesting. A few years ago, the previous CEO, Umeiji Nishimura, was sick and dying. As you might know, per tradition on Jurai, the CEO reserves the right to appoint a successor to his position."

"I didn't know that," Kiyone deadpanned.

"Oh, well you do now," Ryoji said. "So, everyone expected Umeiji to choose Asaka since he's the president… you know, a very senior officer. But instead, he chose his son Kakuji."

"And so Asaka became jealous?" Kiyone asked.

"He threatened to go to a rival company and leak in-house secrets. He must've thought that would scare them, but it didn't. He just gave up after a while. So after reading that I was thinking-"

Kiyone interrupted. "You were thinking that, after digging up some old news from years ago, it was acceptable to fabricate a giant conspiracy in your head about Seijuro Asaka smuggling weapons to terrorists, just because he threatened to leave the company!?"

"It wasn't a conspiracy! You have to understand, the story itself doesn't matter, but I learned that Seijuro Asaka really, really, wanted to become the CEO. I just thought his character was… suspicious."

Kiyone rolled her eyes, unimpressed.

Ryoji sighed. "I mean, think about it from his perspective. If the public knew that Ashigaru weapons were used by terrorists, that's putting a lot of pressure on the company's figurehead... that's the CEO, in case you didn't know. If he were to get removed to protect the company's image, that would be Asaka's chance to swipe the position for himself."

"You could have still been wrong back then. Then we'd be back to square one." Kiyone remarked.

"But I was right, so we're going to keep going," Ryoji countered. "Oh, we're already back to Yagami."

Aboard the ship, Ryoji was fiddling with his control cube. Then, he brought forth two sets of identical clothing and handed them to Kiyone and Mihoshi. Upon inspection, they were discovered to be clothing: grey pants, brown vests over a white shirt, and bright blue ties to add a small bit of flair.

"Put them on."

"What?" the two women asked jointly.

"It's for our operation. Just put them on. I'll… I'll look away if you want."

Kiyone and Mihoshi looked at each other. Their eyes told each other that this wasn't what they expected to be doing, but there was no helping it. They walked out of Ryoji's sight to the equipment room.

Ryoji headed for the ship's cockpit and commanded loudly, "Yuusaku, show yourself."

To his disappointment, the ship's assistant AI module did not appear as per command.

He scratched his head, trying to remember the actual name of this ship. "Yoritake? No... Yoshiko? Yakushima?"

"Yagami!" Kiyone called out from across the ship.

The AI Module sprouted out of the ceiling immediately. With its optical scanner, it identified the newcomer due to his deficiency in height.

"One hundred and sixty… I mean, welcome back, Lieutenant Ishizuka. Are we returning to Headquarters?" it asked.

An annoyed Ryoji grunted and answered, "Not yet," Ryoji answered. "I just want you to place a call into the Ashigaru Corporation Building on my order. The one in Jurai City, you know?"

Yagami blinked it's two large eyes twice. "May I ask why?"

"No."

An awkward silence permeated the cockpit, as Yagami was unprepared for the Lieutenant's answer.

It finally answered. "Well, that order is within my capabilities, Lieutenant. Whenever you're ready."

A few minutes later, Kiyone and Mihoshi returned to the cockpit sporting the outfits clothes that Ryoji gave them. The Lieutenant looked satisfied at the result.

"I'll admit they're somewhat… tomboyish, but they'll do. What's important is that they're less suspicious than Galaxy Police Uniforms."

"But why are dressing up like businesswomen anyway?" Kiyone asked.

"It's not obvious?" Ryoji asked in surprise.

"Not really, no," Kiyone answered.

"Oh, sorry. I thought… nevermind. You two are going to attend a business conference at Ashigaru Corporation's headquarters."

Mihoshi and Kiyone didn't answer. Ryoji took it as a sign that he needed to explain further.

He sighed and continued. "Our goal is to get to Asaka, and we can do that by going where he works, the Ashigaru Corporation Building. You two are posing as representatives of Nanbu Electronics. They're a smaller firm, only about a thousand employees. We're just borrowing their credentials for today."

"Lieutenant, that sounds very… illegal, " Mihoshi commented. Kiyone nodded in agreement.

"True, but… well, smuggling weapons is even more illegal," Ryoji countered. "Now, we need to call someone there and arrange a meeting with Ashiaru's board of directors. So, who's going to talk?"

Kiyone raised her hand. "Hold on… what-"

"Thanks for volunteering!" Ryoji interrupted. He gave a thumbs-up to Yagami. "Make the call."

The AI was at work in an instant. After a pause, a male voice came through the unit's speakers.

"Hello, this is Ashigaru Corporation Building in Jurai City. Who I am speaking to?"

Kiyone cleared her throat. Thanks to the lieutenant's impatience, she would have to do this flawlessly without a second of practice.

"Hello, I am a representative of Nanbu Electronics." she began. "We're contacting Ashigaru Corporation in hopes we could discuss-"

"Nanbu Electronics?" the receptionist interrupted. "I've never heard of them."

Kiyone laughed uncomfortably. "Naturally. We're a smaller firm that operates in Jurai City. You might have to look us up on the Hypernet."

Keyboard clicks could be heard as the receptionist was searching for the industrial firm in question.

"Nanbu… Nanbu. Oh, there you are!" he announced. "Sorry about that. So, you were saying you wanted to talk to someone?"

"Yes," Kiyone answered. "We have an agreement that we believe will be hard for Ashigaru Corporation to refuse. If you would just let us speak to someone."

"Well, your firm is making an excellent decision to cooperate with Ashigaru Corporation! You'll have to speak with the board of directors to discuss this deal of yours, but I believe there's time for you today. Can I get a name, please?"

"A name?" Kiyone repeated. She smacked herself on the forehead in frustration; just as she was getting comfortable, she forgot to come up with a fake name. Her real name was obviously out of the question.

She gave another quick, panicked glance towards the Lieutenant and Mihoshi.

A casual shrug told her that he didn't take that into account either.

"Yes, a name would be useful for scheduling an appointment," the receptionist said, trying to hide his giggling on the other side.

Kiyone laughed too, stalling for time to come up with a plausible name. However, in the pressure of the moment, she blurted out the first name that came to mind and hoped it sounded believable.

"Ami Mizuno," was her shrill answer. She immediately felt a pain in her chest, and Mihoshi was barely keeping her sudden laughter under control while Ryoji sat confused.

Kiyone felt like she was going to die of embarrassment, but then an epiphany struck. They weren't on Earth or in Japan anymore. So what if she wanted to call herself Sailor Mercury? On Jurai, it's as normal as any other name. She quickly calmed down.

"Sorry, say that again for me? I didn't hear you," the receptionist said.

Kiyone cleared her throat. "My name is Ami Mizuno."

"Ami… Mizuno," he repeated, probably writing the name down somewhere.

"Oh, and I'll also be accompanied by one of my colleagues," Kiyone continued. "Her name is…"

Mihoshi rushed over and started whispering a suggestion into Kiyone's ear, but she instantly put a finger over Mihoshi's mouth before she could finish. The look of anger and embarrassment on her face said everything.

She cleared her throat and loudly answered the receptionist. "Risako Hoshie."

"Okay. Risako… Hoshie," he repeated. "Ms. Mizuno, I can schedule an appointment with the board at three today. Can you make it?"

"Of course, we can make it. Thank you." Kiyone said before hanging up.

Ryoji was fumbling with this control cube but soon produced a folder heavy with the stack of papers inside. "A copy of the business agreement with Ashigaru. It's just Nanbu undercutting the cost of making plasma cartridges," he explained. "I only printed one copy, so be careful not to lose it."

"Lieutenant, are you sure that we call pull this off? This is very risky."

Ryoji waved his hand dismissively. "It's not risky. We'll just do what we just did earlier. That earpiece I gave you… you still have it, right?"

Kiyone silently turned her head and showed off the earpiece still in place from earlier.

"Good, we'll just use that again," he said, nodding. Then he glanced at Mihoshi and fumbled in his pockets. He eventually procured what he was looking for: two small thin plastic lids.

"You're going to have an important task, Kuramitsu," he said. "You're going to put these contacts on and look at Seijuro Asaka. That's it, actually."

Mihoshi took the contacts in her hands. "Thanks, but my vision is perfect. Do you have any idea how many carrots I ate on Earth?"

Ryoji slightly tilted his head in confusion. "What's a carrot?" he asked.

"Mihoshi," Kiyone interrupted, "unless you have a severe nutritional deficiency, carrots don't improve your eyesight."

"They don't? Then why else would Tenchi bother growing so many of them if they're just regular vegetables?"

"Who's Tenchi?" Ryoji asked quietly. Unfortunately, both women were absorbed in this abrupt conversation.

"You mean apart from feeding Ryo-Ohki? I don't know, maybe he just likes how they taste?" Kiyone asked.

Mihoshi shook her head. "I doubt it. One time, I ate a carrot right out of the ground and it tasted awful!"

"Did you remember to wash it… with water?"

"Water?"

Kiyone facepalmed. "Nevermind."

Now Ryoji was genuinely curious as to what Kiyone and Mihoshi were talking about.

"Did... did you just say that a Terran is feeding space pirate Ryoko's spacecraft?"

Mihoshi and Kiyone snapped their heads at Ryoji, dead silent and with terrified looks on their faces.

"Ah! We're so sorry, Lieutenant!" Kiyone said. "We don't mean 'that' Ryo-Ohki! You see, one of our Terran neighbors had a pet named Ryo-Ohki. A crazy coincidence, I know!"

"Yeah, it's not like it could transform into a spaceship or anything! Not at all!" Mihoshi concurred.

"Interesting," Ryoji said, shrugging. "Anyway, these contacts I have are another experiment I borrowed from R&D. They're cameras that match the movement of your eyes. Whatever you see, they will see."

Mihoshi nodded, but Ryoji could tell that the officer had no idea why she was doing this.

Ryoji cleared his throat and continued. "If our theory about Seijuro Asaka is correct, then we can prod him with words that will catch him off guard. Your job is to look at him and record him in case this happens."

"Oh," Mihoshi said, understanding her role.

Ryoji turned back to Kiyone. "What do you think?"

Kiyone was unamused. "What do I think?" she repeated. "You should've asked us that before you signed us up to do it!"

* * *

By Jurai City standards, the Ashigaru Corporation Building was not as impressive as originally imagined. Standing at the corner of two acute streets, the cylindrically-shaped skyscraper fit in too well with the buildings around it. If they weren't going out of their way to find it, they likely wouldn't have noticed it at all. The front entrance stood in front of them. Ashigaru Headquarters stood in front of them. Kiyone stared at the doors and then above at the sets of windows of the building.

"I still can't believe we're doing this," she said, sighing.

"It's too late to complain, Ami," Mihoshi said. "Let's just do it!"

"You're too optimistic, Risako. Honestly, what is the Lieutenant thinking? Either we do it perfectly, or they'll unmask us and cause a major scandal for the Galaxy Police. It's completely reckless!"

"It's not reckless if we're successful," a familiar voice said in Kiyone's ear. She had momentarily forgotten about the earpiece. Ishizuka could hear everything that they were saying.

"That's not how it works," she countered.

"It's too late to complain, Makibi. Besides, it'll probably only be for thirty minutes at most. How hard could it be?"

Kiyone sighed. "I guess we're going to find out." She turned and nodded to Mihoshi, and both women walked through the doors.

This time around, the lobby room they found themselves in much more presentable, especially since there was a real person behind the front. Two men, one of them behind a desk, were chatting.

"So, do you think having a power range is necessary for our weapons?" the one standing asked.

"Practically, who knows? All that matters is that it sells," his co-worker answered. From his voice, Kiyone and Mihoshi could immediately identify as the receptionist they talked to over the phone earlier.

He then saw two women approach his desk and waved his coworkers off.

Kiyone spoke up. "Ami Mizuno and Risako Hoshie. We're exactly on time."

A quick look at his wristwatch and he realized that she was right. It was time for their meeting with Ashigaru Corporation's board of directors.

He nodded to the two women and got up from his desk. "Oh, good job. You wanted to speak with the board of directors, right? I'll bring you to them."

Stood up and led the two women to an elevator on the far side of the floor. They were bordering on the window, and as the elevator rose Kiyone and Mihoshi could see themselves climbing higher than the other skyscrapers in this part of Jurai City.

Mihoshi was definitely impressed, letting out a faint, "ooooh".

The receptionist was amused by Risako's reaction. "I take it you're not used to cities?"

Mihoshi shook her head. "It's not that. The buildings in Teishang aren't nearly this pretty. They all look the same."

"Teishang? That's on Seniwa, right?"

"It's the capital!"

"Is it? Sorry, I don't know much about Seniwa."

Kiyone pinched Mihoshi. It was suspicious enough as it was for someone like Mihoshi to be representing a Juraian industrial firm, but her encouraging the conversation couldn't be a good thing.

They finally stopped at the top floor, and they were led through several hallways of offices until they stopped at one set of doors. The walls on each end were windows, so they could see the men inside seated around a long oval table. This was their destination.

The only two open seats were the ones that were closest to the door.

The receptionist knocked on the door, and someone inside immediately responded. "Come in."

Kiyone could immediately tell the board wasn't in a serious discussion at the moment, which meant that they indeed scheduled today with their meeting in mind. One man, looking in his late thirties, was seated in the middle, and was in full view from the door. Kiyone and Mihoshi had a feeling that this was the CEO.

He bowed to the man. "Mr. Nishimura, These are the two women from Nanbu Electronics that called us earlier. Ami Mizuno and Risako Hoshie."

Kiyone and Mihoshi bowed in turn to the man.

Mr. Nishimura nodded to the women and glanced toward the receptionist. "You didn't say they were _young_ women! What a shame, I could've freshened up somewhat first!"

The receptionist bowed again. "Apologies, but it was an audio-only call. I didn't know what they looked like," he said. He let himself out of the room.

"Thank you very much for accommodating us, Mister Nishimura," Kiyone said.

"Oh, no. I believe the thanks today go to Nanbu Electronics," Nishimura explained. "Most smaller firms are afraid of negotiating with us. They have it in their heads that we'll take advantage of them somehow, but it seems Nanbu is smarter than that!"

"Yes. We came here just for that."

Nishimura nodded and waved his hand to the two open seats right in front of the women.

Sitting down, Kiyone glanced around the table. On one side of the long table was another man that looked about the same age as Nishimura and didn't look out of place in the room. However, whereas the focus of the rest of the board was on Nishimura, this man was staring directly at the two of them.

Nishimura smacked himself lightly on the head. "Oh, I always forget! That man over there is Seijuro Asaka, Ashigaru Corporation President. He's been here longer than I have, believe it or not."

The President then spoke softly. "You two were lucky that today's schedule wasn't busier."

Kiyone smiled uncomfortably. "Is that so? That's good to hear, I guess."

Nishimura laughed. "Ah, don't mind him. I assure you he's a very capable president, but if we had to pay him to touch up his personality too, Ashigaru would go bankrupt!"

The rest of the board of directors snickered from his joke. To Kiyone's surprise, Asaka didn't seem to mind it much.

She then nudged Mihoshi with her elbow, reminding her of her mission. Mihoshi obliged and shifted herself in her chair so she could get a better look at Asaka without looking too suspicious."

Now it was Kiyone's turn. Even knowing that Ishizuka would tell her exactly what to say regarding the legal mumbo-jumbo, she could feel her heart beating in her throat. She took out the

At the same time, however, Kakuji Nishimura was not at all like they had expected. For a businessman, he was very much relaxed and casual. It would be easier to spin the conversation into a topic that would pique Seijuro Asaka's interest, and that was the goal.

That opportunity eventually. After Kiyone spent around ten minutes carefully explaining the proposal Nishimura asked her a question.

"Tell me, who's the one heading Nanbu Electronics currently? I like knowing all of my counterparts personally."

Kiyone paused for a moment, seemingly trying to conjure an answer when in reality she was letting Ishizuka talk in her head. She'd have to carefully time her response by talking in the intervals where Ryoji was in-between sentences. At the same time, she'd couldn't wait too long without arousing suspicion for her stilted speech.

"The factory owner? His name is Hinawaju… or, no. It's Hinotsuki. Kazuki Hinotsuki," Kiyone answered. "Sorry, my memory was failing me."

"Happens to all of us."

Kiyone nodded. "Yes. And, speaking of, he was originally going to schedule this negotiation last week, but he was worried that there would be further incidents regarding that Kagato terrorist. It's a shame that someone like him could get a hold of so many weapons."

Nishimura shook his head. "It is unfortunate, but that just means the government will be better secured from now on. Meanwhile, business for us goes on like clockwork."

Asaka, who had been silent for much of the conversation, scoffed. "Moving along, do we understand that Nanbu Electronics is prepared to fulfill its end of the agreement?"

"Naturally," Kiyone said. "Everyone at Nanbu has consented to it."

She cleared her throat and looked back at Nishimura.

Asaka nodded. "I have no issues with the agreement and I don't believe anyone else on the board has any either. Mister Nishimura, please do us the honor of…"

Nishimura suddenly stood up, gaining the attention of everyone in the room.

"You know, it's funny. For some reason, I took the liberty of bringing one of these with me today," he said as he reached for something inside his vest. To everyone's surprise, he drew a pistol.

"An X-9. Ashigaru's best selling handgun for twenty years straight! Twenty!" he said proudly.

"What? What are you doing with that?" one board member asked.

Nishimura ignored the question and went on about its quality. "It has the proven highest power-to-energy consumption ratio of any handgun, and it's cheap! A perfect specimen of Ashigaru's internal development and testing!"

"That's great, and that's why we're very interested in cooperating with your company… but could you please put that away?" Mihoshi asked, taking her eyes off of Seijuro Asaka.

Nishimura shook his head. "No, I was just thinking. It's… very hot in here! Don't you all agree? Isn't it just sweltering in here?"

One of the board members answered hesitantly. "Not that I've noticed, but we can call maintenance and see if the air conditioning is functioning…"

"No!" Nishimura interrupted. "I… it's too much! I'm suffocating in here!"

He then coughed hoarsely and put a hand over his forehead, catching the invisible sweat before it hit his eyes.

"Mr. Nishimura, please stop this at once! Drop the gun!" another board member called out. He stood up and ran out of the room. "I'm getting security!"

The CEO then around and looked at the window. "This high up, the air is much cooler than on ground level, I think. I'll just…"

He raised the gun and fired three shots into the glass pane, causing most everyone else in the room to panic and run out of the room. Everyone except for Mihoshi, Kiyone, and Asaka remained in the room with Nishimura.

The reinforced glass didn't break, but they made huge cracks in the glass.

"Ah, it is certainly strong. We need to protect ourselves from assassination, after all. Oh, but the glass is weakened. If I could just…"

"Oh, that's not necessary!" Kiyone pleaded. "You must be sick. We can call an ambulance if you-"

She couldn't finish as she was overwhelmed by the shock of seeing what Nishimura did next. He dropped the gun on the floor and stepped back, then he sprinted forward. The glass broke on impact. Kiyone could glance at the flood of euphoria on Nishmura's face as he triumphantly broke through the glass pane, ignorant of that horrible thing that would happen on street level.

The next moment, she stepped back and could hear Ishizuka yelling panicked in her ear.

"What's going on up there, Ami? I heard gunshots!"

"Lieutenant, you might want to look up…" Kiyone said softly.

"What? Oh… ah!"

"What happened?"

Ishizuka panted and caught his breath before answering. "I think I just met Nishimura. I don't think he's very… he's dead! Okay, change of plans! You and Risako get back here right now!"

"On it," Kiyone said.

She turned to Mihoshi, who looked as shocked as the board members at what just happened and tapped her lightly on the shoulder. They quickly left the room and made for the elevator.

As they passed the front the receptionist looked up from his work, surprised. "Oh, you're already done? I wasn't notified to escort you two out of…"

"Sorry, we're very impatient people!" Mihoshi said as she and Kiyone rushed by. "But believe me, Nanbu Electronics will be very, very interested in cooperating with Ashigaru Corporation!"

* * *

The Lieutenant breathed a sigh of relief as soon as they got back on the Yagami and went into the cockpit. "What did you two do up there?!" he asked.

"Nothing. Nishimura was the one who fell out of a window!" Mihoshi answered while taking off the contacts.

Ryoji grabbed the devices out of her hand. "Well, it certainly wasn't part of my plan. At least we got something out of it."

He then summoned the ship's AI. "Yuu… sorry, Yagami!"

Appearing out of the ceiling again, the mushroom-shaped AI Module asked for the second time today, "Are we departing for Headquarters, Lieutenant?"

"No. Just take these contact cameras and make them… work."

Yagami blinked twice. "I will try and make them… work. Lieutenant."

Taking the contacts for itself, Yagami retreated into the ceiling. On the main screen, a video feed started. It showed Mihoshi inserting the contacts over her eyes.

"Skip to the part where they're talking with the Ashigaru Corporation board of directors," Ryoji ordered.

"Yes, yes, Lieutenant," Yagami said. "Just a moment."

The video sped up by a magnitude of 100, skipping the long trek to downtown Jurai City. Now they were seeing Mihoshi's perspective of the conference meeting. To Kiyone's pleasant surprise, she was not only looking at Seijuro Asaka, but she was doing so with just the right amount of subtlety.

Then came the point at which Kiyone attempted to covertly startle Seijuro Asaka during her conversation with Nishimura.

"The factory owner? His name is Hinawaju… or, no. It's Hinotsuki. Kazuki Hinotsuki," Kiyone said in the recording.

"Pause," Ryoji ordered. "Now rewind by five seconds and play it at half speed."

"Would you like to say please?" the AI asked.

"No. Do it." Ryoji answered.

Yagami sighed again.

As all three officers looked closely at Asaka, they noticed that the President had taken a deep breath and started blinking rapidly when Kiyone mentioned the name Hinawaju.

"He wasn't expecting that, was he?" Ryoji suggested. "Okay, keep playing at normal speed."

Then came the second attempt.

"And, speaking of, he was originally going to schedule this negotiation last week, but he was worried that there would be further incidents regarding that Kagato terrorist. It's a shame that someone like him could get a hold of so many weapons," Kiyone said in the recording.

Again, they looked closely at Asaka. Upon hearing the name Kagato, Asaka looked visibly uncomfortable. He tilted his head down slightly and took another deep breath. Then he shifted himself in his chair and leaned back, probably trying to keep some semblance of control.

Satisfied, Ryoji nodded. "All right, that's enough."

Kiyone folded her arms. "So it looks like we were right after all."

"He tried to hide it, but he couldn't have possibly expected something like that," Ryoji said.

"What do we do now?"

"Now? I think we should arrest him. We just need to find out where he…"

Then a very loud knock came from under the Yagami. All three officers left the cockpit to inspect the noise. They opened the hatch from the bottom of the ship and saw a series of reports with a camera crew nearby.

"Hello, Galaxy Police!" one of them, a young woman, announced.

"Uhh, if you're asking about parking, then we remembered to get a permit from the City of Jurai this time," Ryoji said.

"Actually, we were interested in asking you guys a few questions, since you seem to have some time."

Kiyone and Mihoshi looked at each other and smiled. They then grabbed Ryoji by the shoulders and pushed him forward into the opening. To his terror, he descended from the Yagami to the ground.

"Lieutenant, take a couple of questions while we change back into our uniforms. Try brushing up on your people skills, too," Kiyone ordered.

"What!?"

"We also need to figure out where he lives," Mihoshi said. "We won't take long!"

"Say, you're that Lieutenant Ishizuka from last week, right?" the reporter asked. "What sort of Galaxy Police business are you three on today? Do you know where Prime Minister Torishima is?"

"Well… I guess we're working on tracking down Kagato, just like we were last week. Although last week… we were planning on capturing him there and then. Oh, and Torishima? We don't... we haven't found any trace of him yet."

The reporter nodded enthusiastically. "You know, something terrible happened today. The CEO of Ashigaru Corporation died in a suicide today. Were you aware of that?"

"Oh, that?" Ryoji said, and he instantly regretted it. He just insinuated that he knew about what happened, so now he had to follow through with an answer instead of saying that he didn't know anything. "Well, I heard that he died. And… well, I saw that he died too. I mean, I was standing near the Ashigaru Building when he… well, I saw someone's shadow on top of men and I saw him... Well, I-I got out of the way in time… actually, someone pushed me out of the way. Nishimura -that's his name, I know- he collided on the ground with a lot of erm… noise. It wasn't a pretty sight, I'll just say that."

"Oh, very interesting, Lieutenant! Say, what were you doing in that area in the first place? How does it pertain to your duties?"

"I was there… because I wanted to walk. Yes! I wanted some exercise, and so I was walking! That's all. You know, I grew up in Jurai City and I know about the Densha lines… I just never used them, though. I just prefer walking."

"Would you like to make a statement on the perception of the Densha and other public transportation in Jurai City?" she then asked. "Do you think they're safe for use?"

"Would I? But I haven't lived here since I was eighteen-"

Ryoji and the television could hear the roaring of the landspeeder behind them. Kiyone and Mihoshi, now back in their uniforms, were in the front seat of the landspeeder, and Mihoshi was waving over to him.

"Oh, well it looks like we have somewhere to go. I better get back to work," Ryoji said as he walked toward the speeder. He turned around one last time and said to the crew. "Um, don't follow us. Really."

"Seijuro Asaka lives in Habukuri; a very high-end neighborhood, as you can imagine. We don't know if he's there, though."

"He has to be," Mihoshi asserted. "Where else would he sleep?"

Kiyone was amused by that answer. "Hm, sound logic."

* * *

They eventually found themselves at the door of Seijuro Asaka's residence. Indeed as Kiyone mentioned, they were in a very affluent part of the metropolis. It was an island of large houses amidst the sea of tightly packed apartments and skyscrapers. These households even had a lawn, breaking up the monotony of metal and stone.

Kiyone stopped the landspeeder down the street from the Asaka residence.

"Say, Asaka isn't married, is he?" Mihoshi asked.

Kiyone shrugged. "Hopefully not. I want to arrest him in secret." She turned back to Ryoji. "We'll handle this, Lieutenant. You can make sure that landspeeder isn't stolen."

Ryoji grunted. "In this neighborhood? Just say what you mean!"

They walked up to the front door, which, surprisingly, looked much like the types of doors they saw on Earth houses; the type that was opened physically by pushing or pulling instead of electronically moving up and down. To the side, there was an expensive-looking device with a small glass panel.

"Looks like a hand scanner that unlocks the door," Kiyone said. "We won't be able to fool it, but I'll hack into it."

"Can you?" Mihoshi asked.

Kiyone used her control cube and started looking for items. "I'm sure one of these can bypass it. Maybe this thing?"

As Kiyone took out said item and started curiously looking over its various implements, Mihoshi looked up and stared at the white square button on the side of the door.

Kiyone didn't need to look over to know what she was thinking about. "Don't ring the doorbell, Mihoshi."

"I wasn't going to, honest!" Mihoshi protested.

"Shh! Keep it down or he'll hear you!" Kiyone whispered.

Then, as Kiyone was trying to concentrate with the multi-tool in her hand, Mihoshi stood up and softly pushed her hand onto the door. To both of their surprise, it opened.

"Looks like he didn't lock it," Mihoshi said. "We're in."

Kiyone couldn't argue with that. She moved in front of Mihoshi, and both of them drew their guns. Then they moved into the house itself.

As expected, it was lavish and spacious, but it was missing something: Seijuro Asaka. The two officers slowly and methodically searched room after room; kitchen, living room, bathroom, guest room; none of them had Asaka.

That left the bedroom. As they converged on the edge of the door. They heard a loud _thud_, almost like someone had fallen.

The interior had traditional Juraian sliding doors instead of a lock, so Kiyone simply grabbed the door with her left hand and strongly pulled it back. However, neither of them was at all prepared to see what was inside. There was Seijuro Asaka, lying limp on the floor, and a man was standing over him. Wearing small spectacles, a green robe, and silver hair, he was immediately recognizable.

"Kagato!"

The man in question turned and faced the uninvited guests in silence.

He backed away into a corner of the room.

Kiyone nudged her head toward Asaka. Mihoshi recognized the order and quickly knelt to inspect the President.

She tried smacking him lightly on the face. "Mr. Asaka? Seijuro Asaka?"

She noticed that he wasn't breathing, and upon lifting his head, she discovered bright red marks all over his neck. She realized the worst: Kagato had strangled the poor man to death.

Angered, Mihoshi stood back up and pointed her gun toward Kagato. "You're a monster!"

He then smiled at her realization. He was proud of the deed.

Kiyone took another step forward. "I won't miss this time. I _will _kill you if you try to escape."

Kagato looked unamused by the declaration. He dropped the smile and looked up at the ceiling. This bedroom didn't have any windows. It was illuminated only by the lights in the hall, as well as the light in the ceiling.

An idea seemed to spring up in the man's head as he held his chin and shrugged. He took off the white glove on his right arms and quickly snapped his fingers.

The lights in both the hallway and the room went out. Kiyone, not wasting a second, fired her gun right to where Kagato was, but in the brief flash of light coming from the plasma shot, she could see that Kagato was no longer in the room.

"Damn!" a frustrated Kiyone said.

Mihoshi was meanwhile trying to snap her fingers to turn the lights back on. After three unsuccessful attempts, she holstered her gun and clapped her hands. The lights went back on, but as Kiyone expected, Kagato was gone. The shot from her gun had struck the back wall of the room, leaving a large burn mark.

"This is… unexpected," Mihoshi said. "You should've shot him, Kiyone."

"Yeah," Kiyone said. She found herself looking around the room, looking for any hints as to what just happened. She looked into a corner of the ceiling and discovered a small cylinder with a lens looking at the both of them.

"A camera," Kiyone said, pointing to the object in question. "Where's the computer linked to that camera?"

They found what Kiyone was looking for in the room next door.

Kiyone turned it on and was surprised but pleased to find out that it required no password for the login.

"Just because you live alone doesn't mean you shouldn't have a password," Kiyone said to herself as she typed along. "Mihoshi, go out and tell Ishizuka to call the JCPD; tell them we found Seijuro Asaka dead here. I'll be out in a minute."

"Should we tell them that Kagato was here?" Mihoshi asked. It was a good question, and Kiyone had to think over her answer for a few seconds.

"No. They wouldn't believe us if we told them that Kagato had just vanished."

Mihoshi nodded and ran out of the house.

The blonde officer looked at the approaching officer with concern. "You... you didn't shoot Asaka, did you?"

"No, but Seijuro Asaka is… dead. Kagato killed him." Mihoshi whispered. "Kiyone wants you to call the JCPD and tell them what we found, minus Kagato."

Ryoji blinked twice at the request before shrugging and pulling out his control cube. "Him? You... found him? Where is he!?"

"He just... left."

Ryoji looked at Mihoshi with bewilderment but realized that she had to be telling the truth. "Today is just getting worse by the hour."

Kiyone walked out of the house herself the next minute and got back into the driver's seat.

"What kept you?" Ryoji said, putting away his cube. He and Mihoshi saw that Kiyone held out something in her hand. It was a small metallic disk, the same type that goes into a computer.

"There was a security camera inside Asaka's house that was inside the room where he died. I downloaded the last hour of footage onto this disk." She explained. "Hopefully we can find out what happened just before we entered his house. Also, what time is it?"

"The time?" Ryoji repeated, looking at the control cube he was holding in his hand. "Um, the time is 5:13."

"Alright. Thanks."

"Lieutenant, I am hesitant to ask if we are departing for Headquarters." Yagami said upon meeting the three officers.

"We are departing for Headquarters," Ryoji said.

"Excellent! Just twenty more minutes and our parking permit would've expired!"

Once in space, Kiyone took the small metallic disk and gave it to the Yagami. "Can you use this?" she asked.

"If I couldn't, I'd request a recall and upgrade." Yagami answered.

Soon, a collage of nine camera feeds came on the cockpit's screen.

"Focus on the one in the bedroom," Kiyone ordered. "We got out of there at five-thirteen… alright. Skip to exactly 5:08 this afternoon, Yagami."

"Yes, ma'am."

Exactly ten seconds after 5:08, Seijuro Asaka walked into the bedroom, untied his tie, and quickly fell on his bed, looking exhausted. However, instead of sleeping. He heard a knocking noise outside in the hallway. He reluctantly got up to answer, not seemingly flustered by how someone got inside after him.

As expected, it was Kagato who came inside.

"What did you do, Kagato?" Asaka asked.

"I killed Kakuji Nishimura," was his nonchalant answer.

"But… that wasn't part of my plan! Why did you…" Asaka, looking flustered, couldn't finish what he was saying.

"The Galaxy Police confiscated all the weapons you let me… borrow. Nobody knows that they were genuine Ashigaru Corporation products." Kagato explained. "Great news for the company, but not much for your plan to generate a scandal and force Nishimura to resign."

Asaka grunted in disappointment at the news. "Just my luck!"

Kagato nodded. "I felt somewhat bad for you, so I took matters into my own hands. After what happened today, however, I don't think it will have made any difference." Kagato said.

Asaka looked confused. "What 'happened' today? I don't follow you."

"Those two women, the representatives from Nanbu Electronics, they weren't really from Nanbu Electronics," Kagato explained. "They were Galaxy Police officers. I met one of them at the National Assembly, so I'd know. They talked to that Hinawaju fellow at the factory before coming to your workplace, and he told them everything about what you made him do, too."

Kiyone, Mihoshi, and Ryoji couldn't believe what they were hearing. How Kagato could have known exactly what they were doing that day was beyond any of their understanding.

"Even so, there's nothing to fear," Asaka said reassuringly. "Hinwaju's confession is nothing; the police won't take him seriously. There's no real evidence to tie me to anything."

Kagato pointed right at the officer trio- that is to say, the camera that's situated in the corner of the bedroom.

Asaka himself looked over at the device before realizing he was recording his own confession. He got up in a hurry and made for the door. "Bah! I'm an idiot! I'll erase that recording right-"

"There's no time for that," Kagato interrupted. "Those two women, they're outside, although the blonde one hasn't figured out the door is unlocked yet."

Mihoshi looked at Kiyone with concern. "This guy is… creepy."

"What?" Asaka said in a much quieter voice. "Y-you bastard! Why didn't you tell me?"

Kagato shrugged. "I was still deciding if you were still useful to me. The way I see it, you probably won't be able to procure another shipment of Ahshigaru products after today, so… I suppose it depends on your preference. You don't want to spend the rest of your life in prison, do you?"

"Of course not!"

Kagato nodded. "Very well. In that case, I'm going to kill you."

"What-"

Before he could finish, Kagato rushed forward and grabbed Asaka by the neck, then pushed him against the wall. Using just one hand to pin him in place and strangle him, it became clear to three officers that Kagato is much stronger than he appears.

Having seen everything and not wanting to see a murder, Kiyone turned the video off.

Kiyone sighed. "Kagato. Who is this guy?

Ryoji scratched his head. "I'm not sure if we can explain that to Fujikawa."

* * *

On their way back to their briefing room, they saw two men lifting a rectangle-shaped piece of the wall- the one with the hole courtesy of Mitsuki- onto a floating platform. They looked inside and saw someone carefully welding a brand new wall section where the old one was just removed.

"All done," he said, standing up. "I don't know what SIFO is supposed to be, but make sure they don't shoot the wall again."

"Of course," Airi said.

As he walked out of the room, the Superintendent was delighted to see her subordinates return.

"Ah, Ami and Risako! Nanbu Electronics must be very proud of your negotiating skills!" She said.

Kiyone was disappointed and confused to know that she, too, knew about Sailor Mercury. The only possible way she could've found out about that was if Ishizuka had run into Mitsuki on the street, told her about it, and she then told Airi about it before they returned to Headquarters. However, she figured that was highly unlikely and Airi probably heard the names on the news.

"They'll be getting a lot of publicity for the next few days. That's better than nothing." Kiyone said.

Airi nodded. "And what did you find out about Ashigaru Corporation?"

"Seijuro Asaka, President of Ashigaru Corporation, intimidated a factory owner to give him a shipment of weapons that he then sent Kagato's way. He wanted to use the scandal to pressure the CEO Kakuji Nishimura to resign and then take up the position himself."

"Oh? And where is Seijuro Asaka now? Did you arrest him? Does the CEO know about this?"

Kiyone cleared her throat before giving the bad news. "They're both dead. Nishimura went crazy and threw himself out of a window at the top of the Ashigaru Corporation Building; Asaka… was killed by Kagato-strangled to death."

Airi's eyebrows perked up at his mentioning. "Kagato? And how did you know that?"

"We… met him at the scene of the crime- Asaka's home. We tried to arrest him, but… he just disappeared on us. I'm sorry, I can't really explain it."

Mihoshi nodded. "He just turned off the lights, and he was gone! Kiyone even tried shooting him, but he vanished into thin air!"

Airi looked intrigued by that detail. "Anything else?"

Kiyone sighed. "Yes. We reviewed security footage inside Asaka's home, and somehow Kagato knew exactly what we were doing for the whole day. It's like he was watching us plan everything else in person. I… can't explain that either."

Airi was silent, thinking over what to say.

"This wasn't what I was expecting to learn, but we probably learned something even more important about Kagato." She said finally. "Vanishing into thin air, being able to know when he shouldn't know? No one can do that. We'll keep that in mind the next time we see him. You're dismissed for now."

Kiyone, Mihoshi, and Ryoji saluted as Airi went to leave, but she turned around to say one last thing before they left.

"Oh, and Ishizuka, that was a terrific interview you gave this afternoon!"

_To be continued..._

* * *

**PREVIEW OF**

**NEXT EPISODE**

"Hey, it's Mitsuki again. I hope Airi isn't too mad about that hole in the wall I made, but for the record, it was entirely that bubblehead's fault for scaring me!"

"Oh well, I have to focus on my mission now. It's funny; we're called Galaxy Police Detectives, but we honestly don't do much detective work. That's is going to change though. I'm being sent to investigate a murder linked to Kagato, but it looks like I'll also be getting some unwanted help along the way. Say, did I ever tell you I was born in Jurai City? Oh, of course not. Who do you think I am, the main protagonist!?"

The next episode of** Tenchi Muyo: Miho-Kiyo Complex**: Episode Five- "**Kushi-Yori Investigations!**"

"It's unquestionably going to be the first episode without Kiyone and Mihoshi! You better enjoy it, or else…"

* * *

**Author's Note #4: You thought I went on hiatus? Well, that's because I did!**

I wasn't planning on it, but school, anime, and a temporary dip in passion for this story put this episode on the back burner for the past year. Also, COVID-19 didn't affect my schedule at all. In anything, it's would've given me more time to work on this story, but I just didn't have the interest at the time.

The past few days, however, I sat down and decided that I wanted to finish this for good. While the general concept for the episode had already been written, at least 35% of the episode was stuff that I have written in these past few days.

That said, during the hiatus, I was still working on this episode infrequently and added a lot of story ideas then. However, I subsequently removed much of that because I wasn't sure if they were necessary to include in this specific episode or if they'd fit at all.

I've also sort of been working on this episode and the next one simultaneously at the same time. Kushi-Yori Investigations! is already over 9000 words, but I'm probably going to rewrite much of that before I publish it. At least it's still better than starting from scratch.

And as for the Sailor Mercury joke... fanfiction is a special medium in that it's non-canon status means that the writer can get away with a lot of stuff that couldn't be done in the official medium. Also, I just love Sailor Moon, so I had to do it eventually.

So, if you're interested in this story, please give me any feedback you have, and keep in touch for the next episode of Miho-Kiyo Complex, which I guarantee won't take another seven months to release.


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